Unleashing Valor
by Tellemicus Sundance
Summary: Strange things start happening when Ulrich returns after missing for 3 months. Xana is lashing out at the whole planet with a gigantic typhoons. The Earth's only hope is to unveil Xana's sinister scheme, and soon! Discontinued, sorry.
1. The Beginning

**Disclaimer**: I do not, will not, and shall not ever own Code: Lyoko. So many of the characters in this story are not mine. But the story itself is, so… DON'T PLAGIARIZE IT!

**(A/N) **_The first draft of everything is always shit—Ernest Hemmingway_.

Wise words.

This story has been a thorn in my side since I finished it. In my original version, there were multiple things wrong with it in my eyes. Now I've the chance to fix and improve those errors.

All the little errors are about to be fixed. Whole new situations, monsters, and problems are about to come screaming in on you. However, I know even now that this story shall have its own problems as well.

This is the reason: I'm basing many of my new monsters and scenes off of the first three Season 2 episodes I've seen. So I've no idea what's been happening in the series and much of what I'm writing is based on my own speculation. Please forgive my ignorance.

But I can guarantee one thing. These new ideas I'm using could possibly make this far better than the original.

For those of you new kids reading this, I beg you NOT to read the original. I want this story to be as much as a surprise for you as parts of it will be for my previous reviewers!

_Just a quick note: I have NO idea how often I'll be able to update this story!_

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_The Beginning_

_July 1_

Even though the school year had ended two months ago, the gymnasium doors were wide open. The busy activity in the gymnasium was because of it being almost overcrowded. The students worked with a suppressed zeal at what they were making. Tonight was a special summer dance, courtesy of Principal Delmas.

It was no secret that this dance was his gift to his daughter, Sissi.

The gymnasium was littered with blue and white balloons. Strips of blue and white confetti paper were being draped over anything that was fastened down. In the center of the gym the tall, dark-haired girl who the students had to thank for this special occasion was supervising the setup of a fountain.

"Don't worry, Sissi," Herb said. "Everything's going to be perfect."

Snorting, she glared at him. "Who asked you?"

Before he could answer, Sissi turned her back to him and walked away. Though he knew that he should've been used to this from her, it hurt Herb at how cold she could be to him. Deep down in his heart, he wanted to ask her to the dance. But his considerable intelligence informed him that she'd not only turn him down but also _kick_ him when he was down. Hanging his head, Herb returned to setting up the decorations.

* * *

Yumi was in her room but it was barely recognizable. This was due to the mountains of clothing that she'd thrown about it in an attempt to find something to wear tonight. Like the students in the gymnasium, she was filled with a barely suppressed energy.

Pausing in her frantic search, she sat down on her bed. In her mind played scenes of how she hoped that the actual dance would turn out. She pictured herself dancing along with Jeremy and Aelita, whom she knew her blonde friend was currently teaching to dance, and with Odd and Ulrich. _Especially with Ulrich_.

She watched as Ulrich walked up to her and asked her to dance when a slow song came on. Then she watched as he slid his hand around her waist and took her hand. She imagined how his fingers would feel if they were laced between hers.

Smiling sheepishly, Yumi felt a fierce blush burning her face. If the morning sunlight hadn't been shining into her room, her embarrassed gaze at her wall would've had the same effect. Then she realized that she still didn't have anything worth wearing to the dance!

* * *

Jeremy and Aelita stood in a secludedclearing in the park. There was a small stereo nearby playing a love song. Taking her slowly through the steps of dancing, Jeremy couldn't hide the blush that was lighting up his face as well.

Aelita was a very fast learner and he quickly found himself just dancing with her for the sheer joy of having her in his arms. She clung as closely to him as she could, enjoying the sensations of touch and smell. Dancing came to her almost as naturally as scanning a computer code for errors.

The rising sun was casting bright reflections throughout the factory through its broken and remaining windows. But what was blossoming inside it was far brighter than anything in the natural world.

* * *

Odd was singing in the bathroom. A stereo was playing loudly over the spraying water that dampening his body. Scrubbing his hair vigorously, he attempted to eradicate any dirt or grit that may have settled into it. A loud pounding on the door brought him back to reality.

"Yeah?" he called over the song. "What do you want?"

"Are you gonna get out of there anytime soon?" Ulrich's voice called in loudly. "You'll miss the dance at this rate!"

"Hold on, speedy," Odd shot back with a grin. "I'm washing my hair."

"Again?" Ulrich couldn't believe this. "That'll be what? The fourth time in less than an hour? _LET ME IN_!"

Smirking, Odd cried out. "You can't expect someone as gorgeous as me to rush things, can you? I'll get out when I'm good and ready!"

"I hate you," Ulrich growled as he left the door.

Sighing, he sat back down on his bed. His eyes wondered the room aimlessly until they came to rest to on his cell phone.

Should he call her? Should he ask her? He wanted to, he _really_ did want to. But he was scared that _she_ might not want to. That was probably the only thing that was holding him back, fear of rejection. Only days later would he realize how different his life would be if he'd have mustered the courage to call.

But, instead, he decided to go shopping. The day was still quite young after all. Maybe he should get her a gift? _Just to be a friend_, he thought. _When was the last time I did that for her?

* * *

_

(A/N) To new readers, I can only ask (BEG) you again not to read my original story. It would completely ruin some of the events and surprises that are going to come up.

BUT even if you don't listen to me, I've made sure to definitely change two or three things, so the ending (or one of them) is going to be vastly different from the original. You will not find it in there.

To my old readers, sound familiar? I bet! I figured this would add a bit of background to the story and to show some of their different viewpoints at that point in time. What do you think?

Along with my first request for the newbies, I have two others.  
One: in the later chapters can you guys tell when I've made a goof based on the storyline of Season 2? Please remember that I've only seen the first three episodes.  
Two: I bet you've seen it before. **R-E-V-I-E-W!**


	2. What Courage Is

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_What Courage Is_

_October 12_

Today was a sad day for Korea and the US.

They had somehow lost control of their missile silos. Now, the nuclear weapons were bearing down on the planet with their armed radioactive warheads. Because of a strange virus that had infected their computers, their militaries were unable to prevent that approaching doom.

Only a group of young teenagers could stop it now…

* * *

Crouched behind an ice formation, a raven-haired girl studied the landscape and her enemies. Flicking her fan open with an experienced snap, Yumi gave a small smile. This would be hard, and boy did she love a good challenge once in a while. 

A large group of monsters guarded the Polar Region Tower. Forming a tight circle around the tower were five Mega Tanks. There were also five Hornets that flew air cover for them.

"There's too many," her pink-haired friend beside her said. "We wouldn't make it halfway to the Tower."

"You're right, we wouldn't," Yumi agreed, her smile never leaving her face. "But you would."

Aelita looked at her questioningly as Yumi continued to scan the area. She withdrew a second fan, a recent upgrade from their computer genius friend Jeremy. Crouching slightly, she felt her adrenaline starting to rise in preparation.

Yumi continued, "I'm going to distract them. If I can destroy enough of them, Xana will have to send some Mega Tanks. That should give you enough room to get inside."

"But—" was all Aelita could say before Yumi moved. She rushed from one ice cover to the next.

If she were human at the moment, Aelita would've sighed resignedly as she began moving forward as well. She was scared, but she went anyway. If this made her brave or foolish, she couldn't tell… Not that she really wanted to know.

* * *

The blonde boy watching the computer screen was restlessly shifting in his chair. As the two girls crept forward, Jeremy could feel his anxiety grow. If they didn't get to the tower soon, the city would be a nuclear wasteland in a couple of minutes. 

"Yumi," he said into his microphone. "Hurry! We've got less than four minutes!"

He watched on his screen as Yumi climbed onto a high ice formation. Stepping out of her hiding place and seconds later two Hornets vanished. Then, like an evil flood, the remaining three Hornets charged her. Yumi blocked their lasers as she dodged around, leading the monsters in the opposite direction of Aelita.

As she was dashing around an ice chunk, Yumi exposed herself to a Hornet that was circling around. It fired…and her back lit up on the computer screen as her Life Points quickly counted down. She faltered for a split second as the laser did its damage. It was that second's hesitation that landed several more blasts on her vulnerable form. The sheer impacts of the multiple attacks knocked Yumi onto her stomach.

"Yumi!" Jeremy called, concerned. "Don't stay there! You've only got sixty Life Points left!"

* * *

Peering carefully around an iceberg, Aelita waited impatiently as the Mega Tanks guarded the Tower. Seconds passed like hours as Aelita waited. All was silent in Lyoko except for echoes of lasers and an occasional explosion, as well as a mocking laughter. Then, after a pair of nearby explosions, a Mega Tank closed its casings and rolled away. Aelita sighed with relief and waited impatiently for them to pass. 

As its lumbering form passed her, she dashed around her shelter. Aelita sprinted as fast as her legs would carry her for the Tower. There two Mega Tanks in the immediate area who spotted her instantly. They angled themselves and powered up their dangerous lasers.

Putting on a renewed burst of speed, Aelita leapt forward as they both fired. Two walls of red laser passed on either side of her as she hit the ground. Climbing to her feet, Aelita started running again. She was nearly to the Tower when the remaining two Mega Tanks rolled forward and blocked her path.

Without a conscious thought, she continued running forward. The only thought in her mind was to reach the Tower; she raced toward the Mega Tanks without apparent concern. Seeing that she wasn't going to stop, the tanks adjusted their positions.

They were so focused on deleting her that they didn't notice a dark figure in the distance. Just as they prepared to fire, two fans flashed passed Aelita on opposite sides. Moving so fast that they were nothing more than mere slivers of metallic light, they struck the tanks' Lyoko symbols. Slashing clean through the tanks, they whipped around and rushed behind Aelita.

Glancing long enough to see Yumi with a large grin, Aelita felt renewed vigor as she rushed to reach the Tower. As she passed into the Tower interior, Yumi gave a yelp of surprise as a series of Hornets' lasers blasted her from above and behind.

Yumi devirtualized instantly.

Moments after she stumbled out of her scanner in the old factory, a blinding white light engulfed everything she saw and felt. She felt herself suddenly go weightless and a sensation of exhaustion lulled her into sleep.

* * *

It was dark. It was quiet. Yet it was comforting. Taking a breath, she willed her body to sit up from her bed. The effort was slightly strained, but Yumi opened her eyes and looked towards the clock in the darkened room. 

After a moment, her sleep-induced brain was able to process the numbers. It read: 4:51 a.m. Xana had been thwarted again.

Smiling slowly, Yumi rested her head on the pillow and waited patiently for sleep to reclaim her. Then, as her eyelids fluttered shut, she felt a disturbance in the air. There was no other way to describe it.

Just…a disturbance.

Like someone was watching her. Like the air was charged with electricity despite the cloudless night. Like the disorienting sensation of floating weightless.

Something had just happened.

* * *

The park was as silent as the city surrounding it. The walking tracks and various paths were illuminated brightly under multiple street lamps. The gentle breeze pulled at the trees, creating a relaxing rustle of noise and causing small waves to lap at the lake's shore. Aside from the random stray dogs that were picking through some upturned trashcans, the park was completely devoid of any life. 

Thus no one saw what happened.

First a fierce wind picked up abruptly. The force of the wind yanked the trees at odd angles. It blew the salvaging dogs' meals away in an instant. Taking a quick sniff at the hurricane-force winds, they yelped and fled like hell was on their heels.

It started as a glowing blue dot hovering several feet over the lake's surface. Sparks and electricity lashed off the dot as it began to rapidly expand. Growing enormously in size, it was quickly to the point of touching the water.

Then, it touched. Upon contact, the water within several feet of the touching surface was flash-frozen and formed a small ice-island. The abrupt temperature change caused segments of frost to coat the lakeshore.

The sphere glowed a beautiful and unearthly blue-white radiance. It threw caused odd, lopsided shadows throughout the immediate surroundings of the lake and shore. Then the center began to darken to a dull navy as a figure began to appear. Curled in the fetal position, a humanoid form began to take shape.

As suddenly as it had appeared, the sphere vanished, winking out of existence forever. However the creature that had appeared had remained. As soon as the sphere had left its body, it fell to the ice chunk underneath it. Upon hitting the iceberg, it had only enough time to grunt in pain and surprise before sliding off and into the cold evening water.

A masculine head quickly broke the surface of the lake, sucking in a deep breath of air. After several breaths, he coordinated himself and swam for shore. With his very fit body, the swim was very short.

Shivering against the cold induced from his water soaked clothing, the boy hauled himself onto the slightly raised elevation of the shore. Climbing to his feet, he wiped the water from his face.

Reaching inside his drenched and ragged jacket, he fumbled with the buttons. His cold fingers were numbing and began to tremble, but he still managed to undo the restraints. Withdrawing an airtight bag, the boy examined its contents carefully: no water had gotten inside and harmed the precious cargo.

Returning the bag to his pocket, the person hurriedly closed his jacket against a sudden wind. As he rushed for some protection against the intruding force of nature, he glanced at the sky. There was a nearly full moon trying to pierce the gaseous layers of the clouds that blanketed it.

It was a peaceful sight; one he had very few of. As a happy smile lit up his face, so did a ray of moonlight. Yes, he was here. Now, he could do what his friends and family couldn't do.

Hope had arrived.

* * *

**(A/N) **AH! The first real difference in this story as opposed to the TWL. As I'm sure many of you have guessed by now, I'm going to be salvaging my old chapters and rewriting them. But I'm also going to be adding new chapters as well. 

Due to a recent encounter with my stepfather (evil bastard!), my updates are going to be even fewer and farther in between most likely. That is unless I can work a way around it and find time to rewrite the story. Wish me luck!

Now I don't mean to be a whiner, but COME ON guys! I know that there are far more people reading this than are reviewing! I checked not too long ago: 44 hits on the first chapter and 2 (**TWO!**) reviews.

In case you may have forgotten from my past stories, I LOVE reading reviews. So let's make a deal, I get at the very least 7 (**SEVEN**) reviews and I'll post another chapter.

Deal?

I'm dead serious about this!


	3. New Arrivals

**(A/N)** I would also like to take this time to thank Trillinka. You saved me! I knew there was something wrong about that chapter but I just couldn't put my finger on it! Thank you so much! For that I would like to dedicate this chapter to you.

* * *

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_New Arrivals_

Rubbing the back of his neck tenderly, he sat up. As his eyes adjusted to his surroundings, he instantly realized that he wasn't where he remembered. A vague memory crept up into his mind: a darkened village with a friend standing close to him, a sharp blow to his neck and… oblivion.

With his free hand, he pushed a trashcan away from him. The putrid smell of it and the alley he sat in were starting to make him sick. But it was this movement that brought to his attention something that he'd missed earlier. Strapped to his back was a heavy bundle that was trying to pull him back onto his back.

Shrugging the straps from his shoulders, he pulled the pack into his view. It was a roll of tough leather that was wrapped tightly around several items. Untying the straps, he unrolled the pack. What he saw took his breath away: several katana, numerous throwing stars, and a pair of nunchakas.

But one katana quickly caught his eye. It was bound in black leather, unlike the brown leather of the others, with a matching scabbard. The metal linings and hand guard gleamed a bright golden color in the rising morning light.

With a swift yank, he unsheathed the deadly blade. The blade was as polished as fine chrome but was incredibly sturdy. The edge, he could see with an experienced eye, was clearly sharp enough slice through a man's flesh with minimal effort. Etched cunningly into the blade was a Japanese inscription.

_Forged by Yukito Takei: I belong to the One who defeated the Dark Lord, becomes the first Samurai of the West, and the greatest Warrior of all Legends_.

* * *

The piercing ring of the school bell signaled the end of another day. Jeremy and Odd were walking down the hall towards the soccer field and their favorite bench. As they approached the doors to the outside, they spotted Yumi. She was going the opposite direction with William beside her. 

Ignoring all else around him, Odd went about putting on a set of headphones. He could barely hear Jeremy's subdued voice as they walked through the doors, "Ulrich would be so mad if he saw Yumi looking at William like that."

Pausing only to grunt in acknowledgement, Odd turned on his headphones. Playing his music loud enough for Jeremy to hear, he began humming to the beat of the song. He slouched into the bench, stretching his legs and back. Sitting down on the bench, Jeremy opened his laptop and immersed himself in his project.

"Hey, Jeremy," a familiar voice called to him.

One glance behind him Jeremy forgot all about his laptop. He scooted over slightly to allow more space for his beloved pink-haired friend, Aelita.

Feeling restless with the fast paced song ringing in his ears, Odd stood up and wandered off. He also knew what was probably going to happen between the two lovebirds and he didn't feel like losing his lunch again just yet.

Without paying much attention to where he was going, he soon found himself pacing the length of the Kadic Academy parking lot. For some reason, he also found Sissi and her gang there too.

Sissi was pacing back and forth as well as she spoke to her minions. It was apparent that she was upset and her cronies had to endure her wrath. Odd would've ignored them until a break in the song. Between that break, he could barely hear her say one word, _Ulrich_.

It had his instant interest and a devious idea.

He put on a big plastic smile as he walked up to Sissi. He watched as she whirled around at the sound of his approaching music. She started talking to him, clearly with her usual swagger and attitude. However thanks to the volume of his music, Odd couldn't hear or even comprehend a word of it.

His smile transformed into a genuine one as he interrupted her. "My dreams come true! I can't hear a single word you just said!"

Sissi's face contorted slightly with anger. She started yelling at him at the top of her lungs apparently as her face turned several shades of red. He could've just barely heard her seething remarks above his music, if he had cared to listen. Throwing on a face of mock concern, Odd shushed her.

In a calm voice, he said "You shouldn't get so mad, Sissi. Otherwise, your face might get stuck in that position—oh wait! Stupid me! That would be an _improvement_!"

Sissi's glare of pure hatred was lost to him as he walked off laughing loudly at his own joke. He left behind a thoroughly ticked off Sissi and the promise of some bitter payback.

Yes, his spirits were quite high as he rounded a corner toward the game field.

Suddenly the music was playing on deaf ears as Odd stared. There, in the shadows of the tool shed, was a figure he'd not seen for two months. It was Ulrich! Standing there at the corner in disbelief, he watched. As if sensing that someone was watching him, Ulrich suddenly vanished behind the shed.

Finding his voice, Odd cried, "Ulrich!"

Odd ran for the shed. With his adrenalin rush, Odd was at the shed in moments. He didn't even notice that his headphones had slipped from their place and fell down to his shoulders. Thanks to the distance involved and the speed at which he had tried to force upon his unprepared body, he was quite out of breath.

When he could breathe again, he circled the shed several times. He looked the brush and nearby trees, even in the trees. He peeked into the shed's window. He even backed up several paces to look upon the roof.

But he found no one.

Stopping to catch his breath, he pulled his headphones from his neck. Turning off the CD player, he pulled his phone from his pocket. Hitting the speed dial for Yumi's number, he felt a smile creep up his face. _Time to spread the news_, he thought as he listened to his friend's phone as it rang. _Even if I'm just seeing things._


	4. Prelude to Trouble

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Prelude to Trouble_

With her raven hair in a tight ponytail, Yumi skated slowly around the rink. She had a large smile that lit up her face as she held William's hand. The two of them were going much slower than everyone else since they were so preoccupied with each other.

As a fast paced song started, Yumi and William and slid off the floor. Coasting to a nearby table, William dropped himself down next to her as he panted slightly. Yumi was breathing heavily as well, but not from skating. She tried to ignore her blush as she breathed in the strong scent of the boy next to her.

After a moment, William hoisted himself to his feet. Digging in his pocket, he extracted a small wad of cash. Counting the bills quickly, he asked, "Want a drink?"

Yumi nodded. She prayed that he'd not look at her for fear of seeing her fading blush. "A Pepsi sounds good."

Nodding to show acknowledgement, William scooted over to a nearby vending machine. Once he was gone, Yumi leaned back into the bench to let her body rest. Her thoughts were a whirlwind of William's face and how close she'd come to being caught, in her eyes at least. The loud, insistent beeping of her phone snapped her from her daze with a flinch.

Taking it out, she saw that she'd two new text messages. The first was from her parents and the other was from Odd. Since they rarely left her messages that often, she opened her parent's first.

**Be home by 10,**

**Love Mom**

A glance at her watch said 8:29. _Good_, she thought smiling. _An hour left with Will_. She brought up Odd's message and stared at it in confusion.

**He's back!**

**O.**

That was all Odd's message said. She tried to think of what or whom Odd meant. _Odd can be really odd_, she reminded herself for the umpteenth time. William then returned with two Pepsis and a seducing smile. She pushed Odd's message from her mind and enjoyed William's company.

* * *

He was so focused on his computer screen that Jeremy didn't even notice that he had company. The endless lines of computer code scrolled down the monitor with Jeremy stopping whenever he saw an error. 

"Jeremy?" a soft voice said.

Flinching, Jeremy glanced at the hand that had descended upon his shoulder and then up at its owner's face. Aelita was smiling pleasantly at him despite the obvious fatigue she had. He feverishly tried not to blush. "You startled me, Aelita."

"That's odd," she said brightly. "I've been here for at least five minutes watching you."

"Sorry," he said quietly. "I was just finishing my latest program. Once I've fixed a few of the remaining errors, curing you of Xana's virus will be much easier." A small yawn escaped him as he returned to his work.

"Jeremy, you really should get some rest," Aelita said with concern. "You've worked so hard on this as it is. For now, please, promise me that you'll get some sleep. You can finish it some other time."

Another yawn escaped and he threw a futile glance up at her. She was right and he knew it. He wanted to free her completely of Xana. Yet she and the others were somewhat content to take their time with shutting down Xana now that she could live with them.

Though he wanted to share their sentiments, Jeremy just had an itching feeling that something was about to happen. And the strange feeling in the air that he'd felt last night didn't help. He could feel it approaching. Something _bad_ was going to happen.

_Soon!_

Sighing heavily, Jeremy looked up at her eyes and nodded. No matter what he felt was going to happen, he was definitely tired now. "I guess you're right."

Within a moment, he'd shut his computer down and escorted Aelita back to her dorm room. Their walk was quiet, yet comfortable. He always felt this way around her. Like he knew that no matter what could happen, as long as they were together he could face anything. He loved her so much! He and his friends had sacrificed a lot to help her try to become a human.

The memory of Odd's ranting about seeing Ulrich leapt into his mind. As she was about to close the door, he said. "I've got some good news, Aelita. Odd says that he saw Ulrich. He thinks he's finally come back."

A look of surprise and happiness lit up on her sweet face. Smiling, she said, "Really? That's wonderful news! Oh, I do hope so. I've kind of missed him."

Smiling slightly himself, Jeremy nodded. "We all have."

* * *

"Where's Yumi?" Jeremy asked as he noticed his friend's absence in the cafeteria. 

Odd merely shrugged as he faced the lady ladling out breakfast. Jeremy only had part of his attention on what was going on his tray. He kept looking around the cafeteria until his eyes fell upon Aelita. She was sitting at a table by herself, patiently waiting for the others arrive.

That is until trouble walked up to her on four legs.

Clayton, in his signature baggy clothes, sat down roughly next to Aelita. He wore a large smile on his face as he threw his free arm over her shoulders. Aelita visibly trembled as she felt him pull her into his embrace.

"Hey, baby," he said in a voice that sounded like poisoned honey to her. "How are you doing today?"

"Fine," she answered in as calm a tone as she could. She tried to gently free herself from his grasp but quickly found it futile. "Listen, Clayton, I—"

"Wanna kiss the best man in Kadic?" he finished for her in what he thought was a playful voice. "Well, I don't know. Why should I?"

"No, Clayton," Aelita said, feeling panic rising in her mind. She prayed someone would help her. "I was just—"

"Ah, you push too hard, darling," Clayton said, feigning a painful blow to his pride. "But I accept."

As he brought his face down toward hers, Aelita did something she'd never done to anyone. Sure, she'd seen Sissi, Yumi, and even a few other girls do it before but she never thought she'd have to.

She slapped him, hard.

The crack of her palm on his cheek rang out in the lunchroom. Everything seemed to get deathly quiet, but she wasn't sure if it was just her imagination. The look on Clayton's face was of surprise, which quickly changed to anger. Dirk wasn't helping by drawling out his own surprise. Jeremy, who'd been busy getting his meal, finally looked around as he heard the slap. The scene he saw wasn't what he wanted to see.

"Leave me alone," Aelita said, half pleadingly. "I'm not that kind of girl."

Clayton's grip on her shoulders tightened drastically, almost protectively. Jeremy saw this and started moving forward instantly, leaving his tray behind. He could see the bully beginning to lose his temper. Clayton, as it were, was fighting to keep his voice in control. "Well maybe you are, you just don't know it yet."

With her own anger replacing her fear, Aelita futilely tried to pry him off her. "Get your meat hooks off of me, you scum," she growled.

That comment caused what restraint he had left to disappear. His glare told her all she needed to know; he was going to do something to her that she was not going to like. Clayton began to raise his free arm as he said, "Don't ever call me th—"

A rough hand suddenly grabbed his upraised armand yanked him to his feet. "She said—" a familiar voice growled dangerously. Surprised, Clayton could do nothing to retaliate as he was thrown roughly up against a nearby wall. "—to get your _meat hooks_—" Clayton finally looked down at the boy who was manhandling him. "—_OFF_."

Clayton found himself staring into the eyes of a familiar face. The skin of his face was clearly weathered from sun and wind. His facial features were slightly sharper than they had been, more muscular. His hair hung down into his face, despite the thick black strip of cloth tied around his forehead. While his face was empty of any emotion, his dark eyes shone with a barely controlled murderous intent.

Which was focused solely on him.

"Ulrich!" Aelita cried out, breaking the silence the cafeteria had settled into upon seeing the missing student. Aelita was on her feet and embraced her friend tightly despite him holding Clayton against the wall. Odd and Jeremy only spared each other a glance, which the blonde-purple haired boy shot the genius an 'I-told-you-so' look.

"What's going on here?" Jim snapped as he approached the trio. He'd been watching as Clayton was thrown against the wall and held there.

"Oh, Jim," Aelita said as she released Ulrich and faced the large man. "Ulrich was just—"

"I asked them, Aelita," he said almost gently. "Not you. Sit down and finish your breakfast." Turning to face the boys, he eyed them expectantly. When neither boy spoke or moved, he said, "Well then, boys, come with me. We'll resolve this with Principle Delmas."

Finally releasing Clayton, Ulrich faced Jim stiffly and said, "Hai!"

Then he snapped around and marched out of the cafeteria. The others were about to follow him until they glimpsed Clayton and Jim following him out. Completely lost for words, they sat down. For some reason, none of them could really focus on their meal.

"You know?" Odd said, half interested as he dug into his sugarcoated oatmeal. "For some dumb reason, 'I told you so' _just doesn't quite_ say it."

"You were right, Odd," Aelita said in barely a whisper. "He's back."

"Who's back?" Yumi asked half-interestedly as she and William sat down at the table. With a happy gleam in her eyes, Yumi glanced lovingly at William every so often.

Aelita shook her head and forced herself finish her meal, not trusting herself to speak. Odd noticed this and spoke up for her.

"Didn't you get my message?" he asked as the sugar began to take effect. With a foolish grin spreading on his face, he reached for his CD player and immersed himself in the music, ignoring Yumi's questioning look.

"Yeah, but—"

"Yumi," a cold sneering voice said behind them.

Facing Sissi, the general happiness that they had been sharing vanished instantly. Dressed in her usual outfit, Sissi held a smug smile as well as a breakfast tray. The look of devilish cunning was written on her face as clearly as the title of a book.

"What do you want?" Yumi demanded, not trying to hide her disgust.

"Would you trade your boyfriend for another?" Sissi asked with a wicked grin.

Yumi and the others were surprised by her directness. It wasn't like Sissi to jump straight to the chase without beating around the bush. Yumi paused only to consider her words. William watched her with a curiously concerned gaze; he hung onto her every syllable.

"Not that it's any of your business," Yumi growled after she'd gathered her thoughts. "But I would _never_ do that without a _very good_ reason."

Smiling broadly, Sissi said, "Good, as long as we know where you stand in that issue, Yumi." Then she swaggered off in search of a table.

Yumi glanced at each of her long-time friends. Jeremy looked like he was fighting with himself about something in his head. Turning to him, Yumi said in an almost accusing voice, "You _know_ what that was about, _don't you_?"

Looking at Odd, who hadn't even noticed the confrontation, he quietly answered, "Yes, I'm afraid." Looking anywhere but at Yumi, he pushed his tray of breakfast away, having lost his appetite. Seeing Jeremy's actions, Odd snatched the tray and started eating the remaining untouched food.

"Well… what is it, Jeremy?" William asked, growing impatient. As he smeared some of his oatmeal onto his jellied toast, he partially watched Jeremy. His face was contorted with indecision and apprehension.

"He's back, Yumi," Jeremy finally said. He stood up with Aelita and left. Odd was only a moment's notice behind, like a loving puppy following his owner.

"I just hope he takes this quietly," Aelita mumbled as he headed for his first class. "For his sake."

* * *

**(A/N)** WELL, WELL! What do you think of that? I personally loved writing this chapter. It was great fun to involve Aelita like that. And, for some reason, I foresee several more confrontations between Clayton and Dirk and the Lyoko gang!

I'm fairly certain that I got the gangs' personalities down. Although, I'm slightly about William's and Yumi's at this point, I can almost feel Yumi slipping into OOC! That's scary for me! What do you think? Good? Bad?

Because I'm in a gracious mood today, I'm giving you this. But I can almost garruantee that I WON'T be able to update until this coming Monday at the extreme earliest. I will try hard to do it sooner, but

**YOU GUYS HAD BETTER HOLD UP YOUR PORTION OF THE BARGAIN!**


	5. Vindictive Life

**(A/N) SURPRISE!**

I have something to confess. I would like to thank **G-Force 4** for his approval at my using his two ACCs in this and one of my previous stories. He has my extreme gratitude for his approval because I didn't exactly ask for it. Truth be told; I had thought that they were just characters from the series. It never occured to me that they were ACCs.

Due to my ignorance of this; I dedicate this chapter to him.

SORRY!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Vindictive Life_

Something strange is going on today. Yumi could tell from the secretive whispers that followed her wherever she went. When she'd tried to get someone to tell her what the big secret was, they'd just change the subject or shrink away from her. And it was really starting to try her patience. Even William seemed to know what the secret, but refused point-blank to tell her.

The only thing that was going in her favor was her date with William later. She could hardly wait to get away from school and the rumors. That and the fact that he'd promised something special.

As Yumi wrote the latest happenings in her journal, a knock on her door roused her from her stupor. She hid her journal under her mattress before letting her mother enter her room. A bundle of clothes were in her arms as she glanced at Yumi. A warm smile welcomed her into the room while she placed her daughter's clothes on the dresser.

"Your father and I are going out for the night," Mrs. Ishiyama said as she headed for the door. "I want you in bed at ten if we aren't back by then."

"Yes, Mom," Yumi said as she glanced at her watch. 4:36 p.m. It was almost time for her to meet William in the park.

Picking herself off her bed, Yumi stuffed her phone and a ten-dollar bill into her pocket. Walking with her mother down to the door, Yumi locked it as they left. Her father was already in the car and waiting. As she walked down the driveway and toward the park, her parent's car backed out and drove away.

* * *

Ulrich sat quietly high up in a tree in the park. No one could tell how he could've gotten up there for there were no branches that were low enough for him to have reached. The fact that he'd gotten up there while no one was watching him also didn't help to yield any answers. Had anyone really cared to question. 

Leaning lazily against the trunk, he surveyed the park. The scent of the tree was wonderfully refreshing after being trapped in the school for eight hours. Feeling the cool October air on his skin as brought about a sense relaxation. Up here, in this tree, he was free.

Below him, Jeremy sat with Aelita as they shared his laptop. Both were working on what appeared to be an incredibly complex computer program. They spoke in low tones to one another as they passed the laptop between them occasionally, somehow ignoring all around them. And Odd was dancing energetically around the tree as he sang to the song in his ears.

This was perhaps the most content moment he'd had for a long time. However, the only one missing was Yumi, and he readily scanned the park for her.

Then Sissi and her cronies approached. Only half watching the iron witch, Ulrich felt the familiar disgust he'd always harbored for the black-haired girl. She was so arrogant about herself, obnoxious about her crush on him, and conceited that he'd found he'd never feel anything else for her but disgust.

She was in the process of interrogating the couple under him about his whereabouts, having as to not have noticed him. Tuning her out, he searched the park clearing yet again.

Then he saw her.

Yumi was dressed in her favorite black jeans and shirt. With her raven hair flapping and waving in the wind, Yumi walked calmly down the path that was nearby them. She was exactly as Ulrich remembered, well almost...she was much more beautiful to him now than ever before.

Without a conscious decision, Ulrich leaned back and slid off the tree limb he'd been sitting on. Flipping in mid-air, he landed lightly on his feet in front of an extremely startled Sissi. Ignoring her, Ulrich walked up to the path that Yumi was walking on and waited patiently. With each step that she took, Ulrich felt his heart start to beat faster and his face turned a very slight shade of red.

Yumi saw him and stopped walking when she reached him. Her eyes were wide with surprise and her jaw was hanging open a touch as she took in his slightly different appearance.

His shoulders were square and he no longer possessed somewhat scrawny arms. His hair appeared as though it hadn't trimmed since he left. It was long enough to hang slightly past his eyes, despite his bandana. Aside from his physical appearance, Yumi could also see that he'd gained a lot more confidence. But she could see he was still his humble old self from the dark, loose-fitting clothes he wore.

A small smile pulled at Ulrich's lips as he took a step forward, closing the distance between them. He could no longer see or hear anyone other than the owner of his heart. For reasons unknown to even himself, Ulrich found his hand reaching up to touch her face, as if to confirm to himself that it was indeed her.

"Hello, Yumi," he said quietly. Ulrich looked as though he were in a dream as his fingers finally made contact with her warm skin. "I've missed you."

Yumi's face was flushed for a moment while his fingers traced her cheek and jaw. Then, at hearing his voice, Yumi smiled brightly. "Ulrich, you're back! You've been gone for quite awhile." She brought her hand up and lowered his. "I've waited a long time to do this."

Fast as lightning, Yumi's other hand flew up and slapped Ulrich's cheek. The force of the slap snapped his head to the side. He didn't cry out, despite the numbing sting and resounding snap. Slowly he looked back at Yumi with a hurt and saddened look in his eyes. In Yumi's face he no longer saw the happiness he'd always imagined she'd show when he came back. Instead, her eyes were narrowed in anger.

"That was for leaving," Yumi hissed.

A slap to his other cheek tossed Ulrich's head to the other side. Again no sound came from Ulrich except for a quiet sigh.

"That was for _coming back_," she hissed.

The third slap seemed to ring throughout the park clearing. With his cheeks reddening and becoming steadily numb, Ulrich looked back at Yumi for an explanation of the latest attack.

"And that was for me," Yumi said as she crossed her arms. "Now leave me alone. I don't ever what to see you again."

She started to move away but Ulrich caught her shoulder. She glared at him as she wrenched his hand off of her like he was disease. "I wish you were dead!" she growled.

Shoving him away from her, Yumi continued walking down the path. Before she'd gone too far, Ulrich said in a voice that implied indifference. "Be careful what you wish for...you might get it, Yumi."

Walking back to the tree, Ulrich pulled himself back up to the branch he'd been sitting on previously. If the weather would react to human emotions, the worst thunderstorm of the millennium wouldn't have been able to compare to the tsunami of sadness that washed over Ulrich. However, Sissi's weather pattern would've been an eon of indescribable happiness.

"Ulrich dear," Sissi began again. "Will you come down here so we can talk?"

"Persistent, aren't we?" Jeremy asked with aggravation. Sissi's whining voice was really starting to distract him from his and Aelita's work. He could only imagine how Ulrich could it endure it with a relatively level head.

Then Sissi did something quite odd. Instead of an arrogant reply or quick-witted comeback that promised revenge, Sissi flashed Jeremy a genuine smile of appreciation. "Yes, Einstein," she said happily. "And loyal, like my dear Ulrich."

Returning her attention to Ulrich, she continued, "Two things that I love about my Ulrich are his persistence and loyalty. He stayed loyal to Yumi while she backstabbed him by dating William as soon as he left."

The truth in her words bore into Ulrich like a hot knife through butter. Sissi continued her ongoing speech of how Yumi didn't deserve him as a friend and how Ulrich and herself were meant for each other.

Her half-truths and twisted fantasies quickly began to erode Ulrich's newfound patience and resilience, and deepen his despair. He turned his face in an attempt to try to focus on something other than Sissi's depressing facts. Ulrich felt emotionally drained. He really just wanted to curl into a ball and die. In fact it seemed like a really good idea at the moment.

He glanced down the path at Yumi's retreating back. So proud, so stubborn, so strong…so wrong… He wouldn't cry, he'd vowed a long time ago to never cry again. Ulrich couldn't remember how long he'd remained in that tree. Or how he even had the strength to have returned to it for that matter.

Sissi's voice was like an annoying fly in his ear, always there. He sighed heavily as he felt a lonely pit of black depression settling in around him. He'd worked so hard, he'd to sweat blood, put his life on the line several times, nearly dying of starvation and dehydration. And he finally comes home to this?

Life was _cruel!_

Then a gift from heaven was given unto Ulrich: the song in Odd's CD player ended. Listening to Sissi's speech between the pauses for the next song, Odd saw what effect she seemed to be having on Ulrich despite his best efforts to remain indifferent externally. The next song started and Odd smiled mischievously as an idea came to his mind.

Dancing over to Sissi, Odd grasped her hands and started twirling and dancing with her to the rhythm of the song. Struggling to free herself from Odd, Sissi yelled at him and for help.

Nicholas and Herb were on the scene in an instant and fought to free Sissi from Odd's dancing clutches, and failing miserably. The whole scene was ridiculously hilarious. Aelita and Jeremy were quick to laugh at the antics of their blonde-purple haired friend. He even saved Ulrich from the depression he was falling into.

Temporarily.

* * *

**(A/N)**Wow. I can almost feel a power rising from the description of Ulrich's reaction to Yumi's newfound attitude toward him. I can feel the strength of a character development here and it seems to be going good. 

Or maybe I'm imagining things. What do you think?


	6. Venting

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Venting_

All was quiet in the darkness of the neighborhood. He couldn't believe how peaceful it was. With what he had growing up, the calm silence was simply unnatural. Yet he loved it. Simply because there was no one fighting for their lives

He wore a pair of torn denim jeans, a filthy sleeveless shirt, and a traveler's bag slung over his shoulder that was clearly packed full.

It had taken more time than he'd suspected, but now everything was in place. Now he finally could begin with his mission. What his sensei and friends had been fighting for all their lives would finally stand a fighting chance of success. After all, he'd been taught by the very best. That though brought a small smile to his face.

As he rounded a corner, the shattering of glass immediately snapped him from his musings. Shrinking back behind the corner, he carefully peaked out. The street was empty except for a large white van parked in front of a jewelry store. Though the lights were out, people were moving inside. Even in the darkness of the approaching dawn, he could see several men carrying rifles.

_Thieves!_

Running to the nearest alleyway, he set his bag down. Shifting through its contents, he withdrew his desired items: a katana, a fresh set of clothing, and a mask. Donning the disguise for the security cameras, he approached the store as silent as a shadow in the wind.

_This is gonna be fun_, he thought mischievously. He'd been partially looking for a way to relieve some stress that had been building up for some time now.

* * *

The cool Saturday morning air had the faint scent of flowers and rain on it. It was a relaxing smell; one a person could come to appreciate. As dawn's first rays reached over the trees and buildings, Ulrich watched it from his position on the soccer field.He was on his palms in the damp grass. His shirt and the fronts of his pants were soaked through thanks to the endless repetitions of push-ups he was pushing himself through. He now paused to watch the star rise into the sky from the tree line. 

Hoisting himself up, he spread his legs wide as he placed one hand behind his back. Up, down, up, down. He didn't count how many he did. It would only serve to distract him. But now, as his thoughts began to wonder, he realized that might not have been a bad thing. With the way Yumi—

He gave an extra hard push so his body rose slightly higher. Switching his hands as he descended, he caught himself and continued doing his exercise. It was usually so demanding on his body to push it to its limits and beyond. But now he had no troubles doing that. He just couldn't stop himself from having Yumi's—

Grunting in aggravation, Ulrich snapped his legs up into a crouching position. Then, with a slight heave, he pushed his body up into the air and balanced on palms. Then, slowly, methodically, began lowering and raising himself. It was much more demanding than the usual ones, but right now he needed it.

He also needed a something to punch.

With this thought, he allowed himself to lose balance. Turning his fall into a roll, it took scarcely a moment for him to rise to his feet. Spreading his legs and raising his complaining arms, he dropped slightly into a fighting stance. With several deep breaths, he let his mind forgot his problems, lose its worries, and focus on the sounds and smells around him. It formed a vivid picture in his mind.

With a grunt, he launched himself into a frenzied taijutsu assault. Jabbing, blocking, kicking, backhanding, everything he could think of. In those moments of extreme concentration on eliminating his phantoms and fears, Ulrich finally found it possible to get his mind off Yumi. It was relieving for him.

Just like last night.

* * *

With a bright smile, Sissi walked up to the soccer field near eight o'clock. She spotted Jeremy sitting on the bench with his laptop. Odd was leaning against the side of the bench, with gameboy in hand. Scanning the area, she spotted her greatest desire sitting in the center of the soccer field. 

He was dressed in a faded black pants and a simple brown shirt. With his hair pulled back by his new bandana, Ulrich looked ruggedly handsome to Sissi. He stared up unblinking into the morning light, a look of deep thought on his face.

Coming to an instantaneous decision, Sissi swaggered over to her heart's desire. A large smile was on her face for she knew, she just knew, that this time Ulrich would take her out on a date. She had something up her sleeve that she could use to make him, even if he refused.

As she approached, she heard Odd call to her. "Word from the wise! Turn around and save yourself the time."

Ignoring him, Sissi walked on until she stood almost ten feet from him. Her mind raced as she tried to find something sweet and innocent to say. Ulrich stayed in his cross-legged position, hands on his knees, and continued to stare at the horizon. He was completely unaware of her presence as far as she could tell. Sissi couldn't understand what he found so much more interesting in the sky than being with her.

"Hey, Ulrich," Sissi said, watching him. He barely reacted to her voice, only a sudden tension raced through his features. "Why don't you come and hang out with me?"

The only response she received was a gentle breeze that pulled at their clothes. Quickly growing impatient, Sissi continued, "I have special permission from the principal to leave the campus grounds this afternoon, me and a friend. I was hoping that you'd want to go to the movies with me?"

Receiving no reply, Sissi began to get frustrated with this game that Ulrich always played with her. She was very close to yelling at him and letting slip what she'd found when a sudden thought came to her mind. Smirking, she walked around in front of him so he'd have to look at her. Emotionless eyes stared straight through her as though she wasn't even there.

"If you take me there," Sissi said as she bowed down to look him in the eye. "You'll be able to see Yumi. I know that she and William are going there tonight."

With the sound of that one word, Sissi had his undivided attention. As his eyes focused on her, Sissi felt as though she were walking on air: he was about to accept, she knew it. Then his eyes suddenly grew cold and he glared at her. He instantly realized her intentions of taking him to the same theater as Yumi.

"No," he said in a quiet voice. He said it with such assertion that Sissi was stunned into silence. Looking down at the ground, Ulrich stood and faced her. "I wouldn't even go on a date with you if God descended from heaven and ordered me to..."

Normally she would've scrawled and left or try to persuade him again. This time Sissi only smiled with devilish cunning. It was time to spill his secret and to state her terms. She leaned close to him, ignoring his disgusted look, and whispered.

* * *

**(A/N) **Uh-oh! We all know what THAT means, don't we? It means a lot of suffering for Ulrich, sneering from Sissi, and misunderstanding from several of his friends. 

Yeah, yeah, I know that this is a horrible way to end the chapter. To leave you all hanging. It's cruel and stressful.

Because this blackmail isn't in the original, is it?

Remember people, at least 7 (SEVEN) reviews before I decide to update. That is, if I can.


	7. Disruption

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Disruption_

Eight o'clock seemed to creep up on Yumi. She had been eagerly preparing for her latest date with William all morning. She couldn't decide on dressing up or going casual, wearing makeup or being herself, and many other insignificant things. When her watch alarm sounded off at seven-thirty, it quite surprised her. Swallowing her pride, Yumi decided to go casual; after all it was only a movie they were going to and most likely nothing else.

At 7:45 Yumi left her home for the park. At one of the bus stops she found William, Aelita, Odd, and Jeremy waiting for her. Odd apparently was in the middle of a slightly heated conversation with her boyfriend when she arrived. Jeremy and Aelita only paid minimal attention to the insignificant argument, in case they'd have to break up a potential fight.

A sweet smile welcomed her and she returned it to William. Blushing slightly, William turned his face in an attempt to hide it from her. The other all smiled and greeted her. But their tones told her something was on their minds.

Shrugging it off, Yumi was glad that they had decided to accompany her with William. Though she'd have preferred to go alone with William, she felt that they needed a break.

Xana was cruel and unpredictable in ways like that.

With her and William leading the way to the theater, the others followed quietly. Until Odd had submerged himself in his CD player again, that is. With his words distorted and off-key, Odd sang quietly to the song.

Aelita grinned at her friend as he continued, despite William's obvious annoyance. Jeremy kept to himself, quiet with a look of deep thought on him. His laptop was tucked safely under his arm. However, William's warm and firm frame at her side drew her attention to it like a magnet.

The theater slowly came into view as they walked down the crowded streets. A tall building with the words 'Royal Knights' Temple' in neon lights stood proudly between Pizza Plaza and a mall. It was quite easy to identify the Royal Knights' Temple as a theater due to the peculiar, yet familiar features.

A long line of adults, teenagers, and kids stood inside the theater. The din of the numerous activities was considerable. As they passed into the building, the strong scent of popcorn hung over them like a fog.

As they approached the building, they noticed that a majority of the crowd was gathered in front of the numerous televisions in the front windows. With only a glance at each other, Yumi and William began to pick their way through the crowd.

On the screen a blonde woman in a formal suit was speaking while the words 'BOY DISRUPTS JEWEL ROBBERY!' lit up the bottom. As they got nearer, the voices of the reporters grew steadily louder and clearer. The woman was saying "— confirmed that the robbery was foiled by a young child, a boy. The police have just released a security tape of our young hero. However, viewer discretion is advised…"

The screen changed to show a darkened room that was lit only by the moonlight filtering through the large front windows. From the angle of the view, they could tell the camera was in the farthest corner of the store.

* * *

_There were two men standing in the aisles and it was quite obvious that they were heavily armed. They carried what appeared to be automatic rifles, multiple pistols in their belts, and they wore thick body armor and helmets._

_The men were so occupied with breaking into the glass cases to get at the diamonds and gems that they failed to notice a silhouette suddenly appear at the front door. It was small, almost half the size and build of either man. But even the darkness couldn't hide the object that protruded over the small boy's shoulder, a sword hilt._

_Then, at surprising speeds, the boy dashed inside and attacked the nearest man. With a single blow, he sent the thief flying several feet away. He struck a glass case, screaming in pain as it shattered under him. The noise attracted the attention of the other thief who instantly raised his rifle._

_The second thief quickly opened fire upon the boy but something strange happened. The boy ducked the incoming bullets easily and dashed among the rows of jewelry, crouched very low. Then, he suddenly stopped and jumped upon the row. He took a fast sprint and reached the second thief just as he was bringing his rifle to bear._

_With what appeared to be an open-palm strike, the boy smashed the thief's body armor like it was tinfoil. The blow knocked him across several aisles and into a wall where a loud smack rang out. The thief stayed where he'd landed, presumably unconscious._

_As the boy was standing upright, the first thief had recovered enough to climb to his feet and aim a pistol. As if sensing the thief's recovery, the boy turned and dashed toward him, unsheathing his sword as he went. _Yumi almost grinned with pride when she realized it was a katana

_With the katana in his left, he swept it to his opposite side in preparation for devastating slash. Even the most ignorant person alive could see that the thief had been milliseconds away from squeezing the trigger._

_Then the blade struck._

_It grazed the man's finger as it passed over it and cleaving the trigger in two. The useless stump fell to ground as the thief stared at it in disbelief. But the boy wasn't done yet._

_Using his inertia, he brought his free hand forward. It landed and the powerful punch left the man's chest armor with an obvious indention. The force of the punch sent him flying away from the boy again, crashing into the opposite wall as his buddy in crime. This time he didn't get up either._

_With an air of confidence, the boy sheathed his katana. Then, as if nothing had happened, he walked slowly out the front door.

* * *

_

"Whoa," someone in the crowd said. 

"Did you see that?" "Awesome!" "That kid sure is a little samurai, huh?"

"That's the biggest setup I've ever seen!" someone snapped. Then, like a movie critic, literally, the person continued, "Did anyone happen to see how fast that kid moved? Impossible! And it was too fluid to have been real."

"Yeah, sure," someone sneered. "Those two men willing broke in and were caught on camera being beaten by a kid. _Right_."

Bored, Yumi pulled William away as the news lady reappeared. In her mind she replayed what she'd seen. A boy moving fast enough to dodge close range bullets, wielding a katana like a master samurai, and somehow knowing where his opponents were even in the darkness. She could understand why that one person believed it to be a hoax; it _was_ too fluid.

"That kid was just toying with them, you know?" William said indifferently. "If he could smash armor like that, then he could've killed them with one finger I bet."

Yumi smirked, but chose to remain silent as they entered the theater. Inside they found Aelita and Jeremy waiting patiently in line for them. Off in another line, Yumi glimpsed Odd purchasing enough food and drink for ten people.

With their arrival, Jeremy and Aelita moved to the front of the room and waited by the doors into the main section of the theater. Yumi stayed by William's side as he bought the tickets for the movie. She was slightly surprised by his choice for their date: _Underworld: Evolution_?

Meeting Odd as they headed for Jeremy, they helped him carry the two buckets of popcorn, four drinks, and bags of candy. She noticed him glancing anxiously at her then into the hallway. While William gave the tickets to the clerk who stood in front of the hallway, she saw why Jeremy looked disgusted and anxious. It was entering the doorway to the theater that was labeled Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. It was Sissi and someone else with her who looked familiar to Yumi.

Catching a profile view of the boy, Yumi realized that it was Ulrich! He looked as though he was going to be sick, but he seemed to obey Sissi's orders without question. Sissi was literally hanging on Ulrich's arm as they entered the theater.

By pure chance, Ulrich glanced down the hall and saw her as they approached the theater. He didn't falter in his step, but he did stare wistfully. Then he disappeared into the darkness, thankfully missing the look of disgust and hatred that Yumi glared into his retreating form.

The anger that she'd felt earlier now intensified tenfold, instantly. It, somehow, suddenly made perfect sense to her why Ulrich had abandoned her three months ago. He's wanted to be with Sissi!

Yumi squeezed her free hand tightly into a fist, imaging both Ulrich's and Sissi's necks in her grip, to release some of her anger. Then, as she relaxed her grip, the anger evaporated and was instantly replaced by indifference. _His love life is no longer any of my concern_, she told herself.

Loaded with their food, they took their seats near the back of the theater. Odd sat in the center of Yumi and Jeremy. Aelita, though blushing, grasped Jeremy's hand. No one but them noticed this in the darkness. If could almost be considered a blessing for both of them that neither of them could see the other's glowing face.

Ulrich didn't seem to be overjoyed by being with Sissi, far from it if the truth be told. He definitely felt left out of their old group. No, not left out, that would mean that they were still his friends to a degree. No, he'd been…replaced.

Thankfully for everyone's sake, Sissi had pulled Ulrich down to the front row of seats.

With him all but out of sight, Yumi began acting like the Yumi that they'd come to know the past three months. William held Yumi's hand gently as they patiently waited for the movie to begin.

* * *

The three men looked amongst one another. From their glaring eyes and wicked sneers, a person would think, fittingly actually, that they were possessed. They wore heavy body armor over their chests and backs. Loaded in their pockets were grenades, pistols hung on their belts, deadly knives in their sheaths, and automatic rifles slung over their shoulders. With their faces hidden behind helmets, they all looked like something out of a military soap opera. 

They were gathered in a backroom of the theater, awaiting their leader's command. Soon, very soon, they would get their revenge. They had lost two of their best men to that samurai kid.

Now was time for revenge.

* * *

**(A/N)**_HAHAHA!_ Now this is more like it for the reviews (even though it was mostly Whirobe). Still a deal is a deal. I don't know what is keeping all you others from reviewing, but I do know how many have been on my story site. I really don't understand how it can be so difficult for twenty or so people to leave a small remark or something.

Either it's laziness, or you just think I'm not worth your time. Which one is it?

Anyway, I bet some of you were afraid that you weren't going to see that warrior kid's fight with the thieves. Didn't you? Well, you did. Happy? I am!

And what's this? The thieves had friends?

Revenge? Oh no!

Be careful, kids! These thugs are more than just your run-of-the-mill psychos with machine guns. Rest assured on that.

What will happen? Find out in the next chapter: _Helpless_


	8. Helpless

**(A/N)** First I would like to dedicate this chapter to **The Ultimate Life Form.** Thank you so much for the information! I will be sure to use it as thoroughly as I can in this story!

* * *

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Helpless_

A few minutes after the movie started playing, it became apparent to everyone present that something was wrong with Jeremy. His breathing was irregular; he became extremely edgy, and was turning steadier paler. This became evident when a fight scene happened between a werewolf and vampire in the middle of a theme park. The scene was full of mutilation and death of innocent people.

Rising to his feet, Jeremy stumbled toward the exit. His sudden movement caused Odd to loose his grip on his drink and drop it. Half blind, Jeremy didn't seem to notice the dampness on his pants leg as he hurried to leave the theater room.

"Dammit, Jeremy!" Odd groaned as he brushed the spilled liquid off himself. "Next time, warn me!"

"Jeremy?" Aelita called out gently. She was quick to rise to her feet and follow him.

"Are you okay?" Yumi asked Jeremy's retreating form. Jeremy didn't answer as he cleared the row and ran for the exit.

"He'll be okay," William said reassuringly. "I bet he just needs to settle his stomach."

Returning her gaze to the movie, she said, "Yeah, you're probably right."

* * *

"Green light, men," a voice said over the radio. "Green light!" 

All the men smirked evilly as they divided up to do their assigned tasks. One of the men cautiously made his way toward the entrance. Another stood guard at the only other exit of the main corridor. The third made his way behind the theaters. All of them held their weapons at the ready.

This would be a message and they were the proud messengers…

* * *

Outside in the hall, Jeremy was leaning weakly on the wall. He was crouched over so low that Aelita was surprised that he hadn't fallen to the ground at that angle. She could partially make out the symptoms of shock: clammy skin, dilated pupils, and pale skin. In an instant, she understood. 

"You don't like horror movies." It was a statement. Jeremy, who was fighting to settle his stomach, could only nod his head slightly in his shame. He hated appearing weak in front of Aelita.

As if reading his thoughts, she said, "That's nothing to be ashamed about, Jeremy. A lot of people don't like things that many others do."

"I know," he muttered. "But I still… I just wish…"

"Relax," Aelita said. With a sudden need, she wrapped her arms gently around him. She felt him shudder in her embrace, but not resist. After a moment, he returned it. In her arms, he felt his unease disappear. She was his strength. He had long since realized this, but this embrace only reinforced it. He was so caught up in the feeling of having by him that he lost track of how long they were like that. It could've been seconds or eternities.

But they were pleasant, warm, and safe.

Ten minutes passed and the couple hadn't returned. Growing both irritated and curious, Odd finally rose and walked out of the theater. He found them just outside the doorway. Aelita was holding Jeremy tenderly and he was returning it. Odd felt almost guilty about what he did next.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Both looked over at him as they suddenly parted. He grinned at them because he could see each had a fierce blush. They tried to compose themselves and stuttered slightly out of embarrassment.

"No," Jeremy said. "I—we…that is—uh? Want to—"

Whatever he was going to say was drown out by a sudden, deafening explosion: a real explosion. A section of concrete wall not too far from them erupted in flame and shrapnel, showering dust and debris of wall through the hall.

The explosion rocked the floor that they were standing on. Taken by surprise, all three of them stumbled. But Odd was the truly lucky one. A shower of debris raced over his head and was inches away from killing him.

* * *

Even among the screams of the people, Sissi's extraordinary voice was easily identifiable. A masked man had appeared less than ten feet from her. Even through his helmet and the cheers of his comrades, the man had to grasp its ears in an attempt to shield them from the din of her voice. He easily discovered her petrified form in the seat. 

Roaring angrily at her, he raised his rifle at her. Ulrich reacted in the fraction of a second; seizing Sissi, he yanked her from the chair. A second later the chair was smashed into an undistinguishable mass of plastic and padding from a magazine of bullets.

While the man was trying to aim upon Sissi again, Ulrich crossed the distance in a heartbeat. With one hand, he knocked the rifle's muzzle upward just before the bullets sprayed out. His other hand rushed forward and he slammed his open palm into the man's face.

The unexpected attack disoriented the murderer long enough for Ulrich to drop to the ground and sweep his leg out. Crashing to the ground, the murderer instinctively rolled away from the boy. But he wasn't fast enough. Ulrich's hand slashed down and delivered a sharp blow to the back of the man's neck, knocking him unconscious.

Turning to Sissi, Ulrich let out a relieved sigh.

She'd fainted.

* * *

**(A/N)WOHO! GO ULRICH!**

Yeah, this is quite different from the original isn't it? And confusing too I bet. To be honest, the idea of thugs attacking the theater had only just recently come to me. So even I'm not sure of their motives at this point.

But, right now, I'm sure we won't be seeing them anymore once this story arc is over. They just aren't important enough to bring up again. Unless one of you have some new ideas for me…?


	9. A Hero Appears

**(A/N) **I would like to dedicate this chapter to **Ulrich38**. I'm very happy that you are enjoying this story so much. I'm sure having a great time writing it!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_A Hero Appears_

"This is Alpha One. Alpha Two, do you copy?"

"I copy, Alpha One."

"What's your status?"

"Mission accomplished, Alpha One."

"I copy… Alpha Three, do you copy?"

"This is Alpha Three. Go ahead."

"What's your status?"

"Containing the mob from escaping, Alpha One."

"I copy… Alpha Four, do you copy?"

No answer.

"I say again. Alpha Four, do you copy?"

No answer.

"Alpha Four! DO—YOU—COPY!"

A growl came across the radio.

_Shit_. "Alphas Two and Three! Fire at will!"

* * *

Upon hearing that order, the man standing at the front of the mob with his machine gun at the ready instantly grinned. The panicked mob saw it and an instant realization ran through them. They were jam-packed in the hallway from their universal desire to escape. 

_Easy targets_.

It couldn't have been a simpler thought.

As the man loaded his rifle's firing chamber, something happened. Because of his helmet, he couldn't see it. But he felt his rifle yanked from his grasp. As he was turning to face the person whom he hadn't noticed behind him, the clattering of the magazine and rifle on the tile floor on the far side of the room reached his ears.

He caught only a glimpse of the person who'd managed to sneak up on him before a fist buried itself in his face. It was a figure dressed entirely in black. The punch shattered the plastic goggles he wore and he felt himself falling backward from the force of the blow.

Standing quickly, the man yanked the helmet from his head and tossed it aside. He sized up this attacker in a few seconds and wasn't impressed. The person, very likely a boy, was dressed in a worn and torn black sleeveless shirt and pants. He wore a pair of bandanas over his face and hair, leaving only a small slit that his dark eyes glared angrily through. The only noticeable weapon he seemed to have would have to be the sword he wore strapped to his back.

Glaring at each other, the two dropped into fighting stances. The people in the crowded hall watched in fascination and fear. Those who weren't panicked beyond belief recognized the boy, though from where they couldn't remember.

Then, unexpectedly, the boy rose and crossed his arms. Keeping a close eye on his enemy, he said in deep voice that was clearly fake. "Take it off."

The man grinned. Then, in two swift movements, yanked his body armor from him and threw it to the side. As soon as he was free, he returned to his fighting stance. The boy viewed it with an unwavering and unnerving scrutiny.

Snorting and glancing away carelessly, he said, "Pathetic."

"WHA—!"

A fist in his gut cut off the thug's shout instantly. Looking down at the fist, he stared in disbelief at it. All strength failed him and he collapsed unto his knees, wheezing. He glanced up at the boy as he clutched his abdomen. With a half-hearted backhand, the boy sent the man skidding across the floor several feet away from him.

The people in the hall stared in shock at the boy's strength and speed. They hardly made a sound or a move. Glancing over at them, the boy merely stared for a moment. Movement at the back of the crowd caught his eye.

_Trouble_.

"What are you standing there for?" he yelled at them. "Run!"

Unsheathing his katana, he dashed forward into them. The people reacted almost instantly and ran for the doors. The little warrior only spared them a glance once he was through.

Now that they were safe, he could stop holding back.

They all somehow heard his voice over the noise of the crowd. Yumi and William had safely escaped the theater when the explosion smashed the wall. They were standing at a stairwell when they heard the scream.

They turned and glimpsed a small black blur racing down the hall toward a thug who'd emerged from the control room. Hearing the war cry, the thug lifted his rifle and aimed at its source. The boy didn't stop his charge, even as bullets began to race towards him.

Running along the side of the hall, the kid leapt up as the first bullets neared him. Using his momentum, he pushed himself across the wall. From Yumi's point of view it was hard to be certain if he was running along the wall or not. But as the bullets continued to fly at him, he launched himself off the wall to the other side and continued to run forward.

The thug meanwhile had noticed that he'd never be able to hit the kid at this rate. Using one arm to shower the kid with lead, he unclasped his knife in preparation of close combat. The knife was the wicked nine-inch bayonet used by the military.

As the boy closed the distance to mere meters, he suddenly dashed forward with his katana flashing. The sword cut deep into the hand guards around the barrel and knocked it to the side.

But the kid was still coming forward, swinging his fist towards the man's chest. Seeing it coming, he raised his free hand up and brought the knifepoint down towards the kid's shoulder. The punch connected—the knife buried itself into the kid—the man was thrown almost ten feet away—a deafening scream of pain tore through the hall, like it could shatter boulders to dust.

The thug rose painfully up into a sitting position and examined his body armor. Yumi and William, who'd been rooted on the spot since it started, watched in surprise as the man dug into his armor. Then he proceeded to empty what appeared to be the shattered remains of his chest plate.

If they'd been anything but shocked at the moment, Yumi and William would've been taking notes on how fluently the kid was cussing as he cradled his shoulder. The knife had buried the first four or five inches of its blade into the cavity formed by his collarbone. Blood was rushing out around the blade, soaking his shirt, and gushing down his chest and arm.

"_That was the BIGGEST mistake you've made in the last seconds of your life!_" the kid screamed.

Then the boy did something that must've been excruciating. He grasped the knife hilt and yanked it from his shoulder, an agonizing groan turned into a deafening scream of pain as the blade withdrew.

Tossing the knife aside, the boy faced criminal. Then, somehow ignoring the screaming pain of his shoulder, he raised his hands to his chest. He placed his thumb, index, and middle fingers together as he curled the others. Lowering his face, he closed his eyes and took deep, calming breaths. A strange sense of calmness, a stillness of his raging mind seemed to suddenly arise and radiate from the kid.

"What are you doing?" Yumi yelled at him as his opponent pulled out a pistol.

Time slowed to a crawl.

All anyone could ever see, even with the security cameras slowed down many times, was a metallic flash as the pistol aimed at him. The pistol, a military-issue, made to be durable, was cleaved in two like a hot knife through butter.

They were able to glimpse the katana in the little warrior's injured arm just nanoseconds before his dashed forward and planted a crushing blow to the man's chest. The man didn't scream; he didn't have time. He just crumpled on the floor in a bloody heap.

Breathing hard, the boy dropped heavily to his knees. He dropped his katana into a growing pool of his own blood. He dangled his arms on the ground as his head sagged. As Yumi found herself moving forward, she realized just how deep the stab in his shoulder was. Fresh blood still gushed from his veins, pooling in the cavity, and he didn't even bother trying to stop it, knowing how pointless it was.

"FREEZE!" called a voice from the other end of the hall. Men in black uniforms with the word SWAT on their chests were a welcome sight for Yumi and William. Their savior, however, didn't think so.

Glancing up at them, the boy grasped his katana and forced himself to his feet. Sheathing the sword, the boy dug briefly into his pockets as the SWAT drew steadily nearer, all the while screaming at him to stop moving.

The warrior glanced at Yumi for the briefest of seconds before he threw a white marble to the ground. In a flash of smoke and light, he vanished as quickly and silently as he arrived.

* * *

(A?N) I'm sorry to say that I will probably be unable to post anything for the next two weeks. I have to do something for theNational Guard during that time and I'm positive that I won't be able to do any updates. But rest assured that the day I get back, I'll post a new chapter.

But only if you guys hold up you bargain end!

Until next time in:_ New Lyoko_


	10. New Lyoko

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_New Lyoko_

When the first explosion had erupted from the theater, Odd, Aelita, and Jeremy, after recovering, ran outside and all the way to the factory. As it was, the factory was on the other side of the city. Running was their only option as they'd spent most of their money for snacks.

Needless to say that they were breathless when they finally arrived, almost fifteen minutes later. Sagging against the elevator sides while waiting for it to lower them to the scanners, Odd tried desperately to get his breath back.

Aelita, for reasons unknown, seemed to be in slightly better condition than her blonde-purple haired friend. Therefore, it was her who had the strength to talk first. "Do you think we'll have to reverse time again?"

"God," he panted. "I—hope—not."

The elevator stopped and the doors opened moments later. Rushing into their scanners, Odd called out, "We're in!"

* * *

As soon as he sat in the seat, Jeremy engaged the scanner for active towers. Normally it took only a moment for the needed information to be found and displayed. But for some reason, this time it was taking much longer. 

But because he was scanning and transferring Odd and Aelita, Jeremy didn't think much of it. That is until the search was completed. He stared at the screen with wide eyes and he was had to constantly remind himself to breathe.

* * *

Odd and Aelita found themselves in the Forest Region of Lyoko. But the moment they touched down, they noticed something very different with the computer realm. It no longer looked like they were in a computer. 

It looked like an actual forest: the trees, ferns, a breeze, grass, everything. Even the digital void that they'd always been careful to avoid was no longer there. It was like they'd been transported to a location on an alien planet.

"Guys!" Jeremy's voice called into their minds. "You're not going to believe this!"

"In case you didn't notice, Jeremy," Odd said in a deeply sarcastic voice. "After landing here, I don't think anything you've got to tell us will surprise me."

Ignoring the comment, Jeremy continued as though he didn't even hear him. "Xana has activated _every single_ tower in Lyoko. I can't be sure, but I'd hazard a guess that it's transforming Lyoko into a more realistic replica of Earth."

"You don't say?" Odd said sneering.

Aelita, meanwhile, had walked over to a nearby stream. Bending down, she experimentally dipped her hand into the water. The result surprised her greatly as she raised it back out.

"Jeremy!" she cried. "I can _feel_! I can _breathe_!"

As she was saying this, Odd noticed it too. Lyoko was so much like Earth that he could feel the clothing he was wearing, the air he was breathing, everything.

"Whoa! She's right!"

"Incredible!" Jeremy said, obviously impressed. "Xana really has… Oh no. Careful, you've got three Wasps approaching you fast."

"Where?" Odd called out, raising his wrists and searching the area.

"Due south," he said. "About thirty seconds to arrival."

"Hide, Aelita," Odd said softly as he faced the direction of the approaching enemies. She needed no further prompting than that. She hid herself behind a tree and among a patch of ferns.

A faint, but quickly approaching buzzing sound was the only warning the lone warrior had before a trio of lasers shot forth. Odd grinned before he dove under them. The land behind him where the lasers hit erupted as though a bomb went off.

Ignoring the damage, Odd dashed forward as he sprayed arrows into the air. The Wasps split up and flew in different directions.

"Eat this!" he cried. As if on cue, he hit his mark and the Wasp he was aiming at detonated. "Oh yeah!"

"Odd! Look out!" Aelita cried.

Too late. A Wasp's laser had buried itself into his back. A howl of surprise and pain erupt from him as he was thrown forward.

"Move, Odd! Eighty Life Points left!"

Somehow finding the strength, Odd managed to roll to the side as the Wasp swooped down. Growling in his anger, he didn't hesitate to pepper it with arrows as it passed by. One found its mark and the Wasp exploded.

Standing to his feet, Odd heard the last Wasp approaching from the side. He turned and sprinted toward it. The two fighters advanced on one another in a head-on clash.

Leaping over an incoming laser, Odd sprayed the remaining arrows from one of his wrists at the Wasp. The Wasp managed to dodge ever so slightly to side that none the arrows hit its vulnerable eye.

Odd was actually in the process of turning around in mid-air that he didn't notice the pond that he was fast approaching. The water surprised him terribly but not enough to distract him from seeing the Wasp circling around. Thinking fast, he took a breath and dove under the surface.

The Wasp fired as many lasers as it could towards where it had last seen him. Despite Xana's brilliance, it hadn't predicted running into a situation like this. The Wasp couldn't see below the surface so it was firing aimlessly into the pond. Halting its barrage after a moment, the Wasp waited patiently for its prey to resurface.

Under the water, Odd watched the Wasp as it circled the pond and sprayed it with lasers. Thankfully none of them came close to him. If they had, he would've lost his breath and been forced up. But now as he watched it hovering, he realized this was his chance.

Aiming carefully, he shot one arrow.

The Wasp saw it coming but it wasn't ready. It was so unprepared that it couldn't dodge. The arrow pierced its Xana symbol and it erupted instantly.

Odd shot up only seconds later to take several deep breaths of air. Swimming to shore, he crouched briefly before shaking himself dry. Aelita, who'd come out of hiding, giggled as she watched his antics. _Typical Odd_.

"That was amazing, Odd," she said as she stopped next to him.

He grinned sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "All in a day's work, Aelita."

"Hey, Einstein," Odd called out after a moment. "What do we do next?"

"First, you need to get Aelita to the nearest tower," Jeremy said. "Then we can see what Xana…"

The two of the waited for a moment after he'd stopped talking. Growing impatient quickly, Odd said, "I take it something just happened, right Einstein?"

"You've got another monster approaching from the south," Jeremy said. But there was something strange about his voice, hesitant. "But…I can't tell what kind it is."

Off in the distance, they heard a rumbling like thunder. It was coming, fast. Then the ground began to tremble slightly. They glimpsed what appeared to be a black ball rolling towards them.

"What's that?" Aelita asked quietly.

"Something bad," Odd said simply.

The black ball came to a stop at the other edge of the pond. Then what looked like legs extended from the center of the ball. Two of the legs ended in three fingered pinchers. The other two seemed to be some type of hammer or pounding tool. On the top of the ball a small hatch opened and a head-like object appeared.

Odd could feel a wave of unease wash over him as watched all this. There was something about this monster that was just screaming out for trouble, serious trouble. He barely noticed Aelita as she was backing away slightly.

Then a flap, like an eyelash, lifted and the proud Xana symbol was visible for only a second before a laser bolt shot out. It crossed the distance of the pond in the blink of an eye and struck Aelita dead on.

Screaming out in pain, Aelita only had time to grasp her stomach before she was devirtualized. Odd stared at where she had stood in shock. He glanced over at where the ball monster stood… or had stood.

Looking around in surprise, he tried to find the monster. _How is it so fast?_ That was all he had time to think before a loud crash erupted behind him as the ground shook violently. He was so startled that Odd found he was on the ground and staring up at the metallic ball.

_It jumped!_

It grabbed on to his waist with one of the pinchers and then raised one of the hammers. _This is going to _hurt he whimpered as he futilely tried to escape.

* * *

(A/N) First and foremost, I must give my baby sister credit for this newest monster. It was almost entirely her idea. I tweaked the basic appearance slightly, which she didn't like one bit. But she was rather happy that her monster was giving and is bound to give the kids such a hard time in the present and future. What do you think of it? 

The only reason I agreed to use it was because I couldn't think of any others. Sure, I've created a few new monsters of my own, but I'm waiting to introduce them. That and the fact that mine are much better is why you're meeting hers first.

Plus, I would like to say. If anyone of you thinks that you have an idea that I would like, don't hesitate to say so. After all, if I do like it, I will try my best to incorporate it into this story. That will only make it better in the long run. Although, you'll have to hurry. With where the story is right now, there's only so much I can add until the 'point-of-no-return.' So, for all of us, don't hesitate!

Until next time: _Search for Answers_


	11. Search for Answers

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Search for Answers_

The fight on the Royal Knights' Temple made the headlines of newspapers throughout the nation. Tabloids and reporters swamped Yumi and William after they had left the hospital for more information on the strange warrior kid they'd seen defending them.

They were lucky to have gotten nothing more than headaches from the explosions. But the warrior kid's victims were an entirely different story. The first was suffering from a severe concussion, a dislocated shoulder, and several broken ribs. The second's chest and ribs were nothing but shattered fragments. It was a miracle that he was still alive!

Ulrich's entire torso was wrapped in bandages from his rescue attempt. The SWAT team had found him barely supporting a section of collapsed wall from crushing himself and Sissi. He also had numerous scratches and cuts across his face and arms from the falling debris.

Though she didn't entirely care for Ulrich's well being, she did notice something peculiar about him when she last saw him. He seemed to have dislocated a shoulder with a deep stab wound. When she'd questioned his doctor, she found that he claimed to have received it while protecting Sissi.

_A piece of shrapnel_, she thought sarcastically. _Yeah, right!_ Though she didn't want to believe it, she couldn't deny the facts. Ulrich had what appeared to be the same injury as the boy who'd saved her and the rest of the people in the theater. But she couldn't be certain without seeing the shape of his wound.

She was puzzling over all this when she got home. After reassuring her family that she was fine, she was sent to bed immediately. Not that she put up a fight; in fact she rather welcomed it.

It was very late in the night, almost dawn in fact, when Yumi finally went fell asleep. She had been waiting for the Time Reversal, but after only a few minutes she was asleep.

* * *

It came as a great surprise to Yumi and Ulrich to learn that time didn't reverse. They awoke in their beds in early Sunday's afternoon, quite confused, sore, and hungry. After gathering enough strength for the journey, they met Jeremy at the factory, not saying a word to the other. 

"This is very bad," he said when they arrived.

With the elevator doors closing behind them, they walked over to him. He sat in his chair in front of a screen of endless computer code. He typed various phrases and words, but a repeated ACCESS DENIED kept appearing on the screen.

"I never thought Xana could beat us," Jeremy said angrily, yet quietly. His voice was barely above a whisper as he continued. "We've always been able to outsmart and outdo Xana. And now, when we've almost gotten to the point of shutting it down completely, this happens."

"What's happened?" Yumi asked simply, a horrible feeling rising in her gut.

"A rat," he spat out. "A _rat_ has apparently made a nest in the time reversal program's main hard-drive unit. When I activated it, it fried everything."

"You mean we can't use it anymore?" Yumi asked incredulously.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Jeremy growled. "Unless I can repair what's left and install some new parts, we'll likely never be able to access it again."

"But you can you fix it, right?" Ulrich asked.

Turning to him, Jeremy couldn't help to yell out in his frustration. "Fix it? What do you think Aelita and I've been trying to do since four in the morning? This isn't like installing a new program! We'll most likely need to replace easily _twenty_ hard-drives, reinstall over a _hundred_ different programs, and reprogram everything with only _fragments_ of the previous codes that remain. This is as close to impossible as you can get! All that equipment isn't going to be easy to find _or_ buy!"

"Calm down," Yumi said sternly. When she was sure that he had, she asked, "Where's Odd and Aelita?"

"I sent them back to Kadic," Jeremy said, turning his attention back to the screen. "They could barely keep themselves awake."

"I'll go make sure they made it," Ulrich said as he limped back the elevator.

Yumi waited until the elevator doors had closed behind Ulrich before talking. "Is there anything else wrong? Besides the Time Reversal, I mean."

Jeremy hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yes, there is. Oh man, I wish Ulrich was still here. I should've asked him to wait. Then I wouldn't have to explain again."

"What?" Yumi demanded, growing somewhat irritated.

"Xana has completely rebuilt Lyoko."

"What?"

"Just that," Jeremy said simply. "Based on what Odd and Aelita have told me, it's just like Earth in everyway. You can even feel and breathe there now."

"Really?"

"That and Xana seems to have a new monster. It devirtualized Aelita in one shot and crushed Odd only seconds later."

Jeremy glanced at Yumi's disbelieving face. He knew all this was a lot for her to take in. The Time Reversal was all but junk? Lyoko now like Earth? A super powerful new monster?

Unbidden, a yawn broke out from Jeremy. He was extremely tired from having been up for going on two days straight. Yumi saw it despite his attempt to hide it.

"You should return too, Yumi," Jeremy said trying to draw her attention elsewhere. "You'll be missed. I'll catch up to you later."

"No," she said forcefully. "You are coming and getting some sleep." With that, she hauled him up out of the chair. It took her only a moment to shut the screen and drag him to the elevator. He protested the whole time.

* * *

_Picking up the discarded sword, the pretty dark-haired girl walked toward him. Eyeing the wooden weapon with distaste, he glanced at her with a sinking feeling in his gut. "What is that for?"_

"_My brother, Tadashi," the girl, Taki, said as she pointed toward the seventeen-year-old standing impatiently behind her. "wants to fight you. He has to know how experienced you are in swordsmanship."_

_Shifting his gaze to the young man, he watched as the teen smirked confidently. Looking back at Taki, he had almost a pleading look in his eye. He really didn't want to do this. But seeing that she wasn't going to help him, he grasped the sword and walked toward Tadashi._

_Holding his sword ready, he watched Tadashi carefully. If he had to, he would show him how skilled he was. As he studied his opponent, everything else around him suddenly went strangely quiet; his surroundings grew hazy and distorted._

_Tadashi meanwhile was studying his form. He had a good posture and it appeared as though he had some experience with a sword before. The boy's careful gaze at his own posture also gave off the notion that he was hoping Tadashi would make the first move._

_He obliged him._

_Swinging his sword in a fast arc toward the boy's knee, Tadashi was almost surprised to find his attack blocked. Bringing his sword back to him quickly, he stepped back slightly to avoid the boy's slash to his wrists. Then, with the flick of his wrist, Tadashi disarmed the boy._

_The sword bounced off the ground a few feet away. The boy looked at it in surprise, there back at Tadashi who wore a smug grin on his face. Quickly recovering the weapon, he dropped into his stance again and waited._

_As Tadashi was about to attack, the boy did. The fast slash at Tadashi's chest was blocked. Sliding his sword down through the gap in boy's defense, his weapon jabbed him roughly in the chest. Recovering fast, he attacked in a fast series of thrusts and slashes. He wouldn't give this teenager the pleasure of beating him so easily. However, each one of his attacks was blocked with ease._

_Despite his annoyance at the boy's determination, he had to admire his apparent skill. The boy, though he couldn't see it, was actually making him sweat slightly. That alone was rare for him fighting a boy of his obvious skill level._

_Then, the boy made a vital mistake. Swinging too hard, his thrust overextended his reach. Dodging around the shaft, Tadashi brought his sword down on his wrists, knocking the sword from his hands yet again. Then, before he could move, Tadashi slammed his elbow into his face._

_Grasping his face, he dropped ungracefully to the ground. His growls of pain were so mixed with his labored breathing that no one could tell which hurt him more. Backing away from his downed opponent, Tadashi turned and started to walk away._

_Taki stood in front of him, glaring. "_You didn't have to do that_," she growled._

"What do you care_?" he asked good-naturedly. With male intuition and wisdom from his years of dealing with females Tadashi could see something that Taki was trying to hide. He could tell from her expression that she was mad because she seemed to be attracted to this boy.

* * *

_

(A/N) Isn't this a new twist? It's not Xana this time that messes with the TRP. It's a rat! Go figure, huh? I felt that that was truly ingenious in itself. Now the kids not only have to deal with an altered Lyoko, new monsters, and a ruined TRP, they have to fix the TRP. 

But where could they get the right parts? Does Jeremy even know how to fix stuff like this? Sure, he's a computer geek. But is he also a mechanic of such?

Find out in the next chapter: _Hel-lo!_


	12. Hello!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Hel-lo!_

The old computers of Kadic had been piling up in a nameless storage room for some time. No one had every really found the time to empty it out for the past ten years. There were examples of some of the first computers ever made still locked away in that room. Many people didn't even know what was behind the door.

Save for three…

"How are we going to get all of this to the factory?" Odd asked in a whining voice. The pile was surprisingly large and comprised of mostly hard-drives from the newer computers. As well as other salvaged parts like wiring and numerous others.

"As quickly as we can," Ulrich growled as he began to stuff the supplies into a crate.

One glance at his friend was enough to tell him that Ulrich wasn't in the mood for jokes. There was a deadly seriousness coming from him. He knew that Odd, though not as injured as he was, would probably be unwilling to do more than his share to make up for his handicap. The fact that he was injured in the first place didn't help his mood much either.

"You know," Odd said as he started to help. "Jim is gonna flip if he catches us."

* * *

"Aelita?" Mrs. Hertz called from the front of the class. "Have you seen Ulrich, Odd, or Jeremy today?" 

She had to fight the urge to stand up when she heard her name called. Swallowing a small lump in her throat, she put on what she hoped was a face of confusion. To a degree, it was genuine.

"No, ma'am," she said politely. "I haven't seen them all day."

Mrs. Hertz looked at her skeptically for a moment. It seemed to Aelita that she was trying to determine if she knew more than she was telling. For the answer that she'd given, Aelita had been very truthful. Still, she had to fight to control her rising nervousness while under her teacher's gaze.

After a moment, Mrs. Hertz nodded. Then she told the class to open their books. Aelita, for her part, was relieved and let out a small sigh. But it didn't go unnoticed by a pair of suspicious dark eyes.

* * *

"Spill it, Mrs. Einstein," Sissi snarled as she walked up Aelita who was sitting by herself at the table. "Where is my dear and his _friends_?" 

"I don't know, Sissi," Aelita said, not looking up. She tried to concentrate on eating her grilled cheese sandwich. No matter how long she lived on Earth, she didn't think that she'd ever get used to all the senses.

"You can't pull the wool over my eyes like Mrs. Hertz," Sissi growled. "Tell me where he is or, so help me, I'll have to resort to drastic measures."

"Like what?" Aelita asked, half interested and half challenging.

Sissi only furrowed her brows in obvious displeasure. She couldn't really do anything without at least a bit of proof. A fact that both the girls knew too well.

"When I find my Ulrich," she began with a wicked sneer. "I'll make sure he never has to associate with a manipulative witch like you." She walked away with her head held high.

Just as she was out of hearing range, Aelita's cell phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, she smiled appreciatively.

_Jeremy_.

* * *

"Jeremy?" 

A smile lit up his face instantly. "Oh, Aelita! You have no idea how good it is to hear your voice!"

"Thanks," he could her the small smile in her voice. "Where are you guys? How's it going?"

Looking at the chaotic scene of the useless hard-drives and other bits of ruined metal and various tools that lay scattered on the floor around him, he could only sigh. "Not too well. I've only had time to pick out what's destroyed and what's probably not going to be serviceable. It isn't looking too good right now."

"I hope you guys can fix it soon," Aelita said wistfully. "I don't think I can stand another day of this."

"Don't worry," he said reassuringly as the sound of the elevator descending reached him. "Tomorrow it's Odd's turn."

The elevator doors opened to reveal Ulrich and Odd standing amongst a large pile of boxes and crates. Odd was carrying a bag filled with what looked to be food. Using his good arm and his body together, Ulrich was supporting a box that was clearly heavy.

"Who you talking to?" Odd called as they stepped off.

"Aelita," Jeremy said as he tried to return to his previous conversation. "It looks like Ulrich and Odd just arrived with a few essentials."

Putting his bag down next to Jeremy, Odd pulled out a bag of chips and a six-pack of soda. "Yeah, the _bare_ essentials!" he said loud enough for Aelita to hear.

"Quiet, Odd," Jeremy said as he stood up and tried to move away from his obnoxious friend. "Listen, Aelita. The _reason_ why I'm calling now is have you seen Yumi by any chance?"

"Yumi?"

"Yeah, have you seen her in the halls or at all today?"

Odd pulled the cell phone from his ear just far enough for both of them to hear her answer. "No. Why? I-Is she missing?"

Grunting from carrying the box into the room, Ulrich paused as he passed them. "You know," he said accusingly. "There's still a little bit more stuff to help with _Odd_!"

"HEY!" Odd cried as though the accusation had hurt his feelings. "I'm helping Jeremy—Gimme the phone."

Grabbing the phone, Odd tried to pulled to pull it from his blonde friend's grasp. But Jeremy yanked it back and shoved Odd away from him. Stumbling on a discarded hard-drive, Odd fell to the floor with a yelp.

"So you haven't seen her at all then, huh?" Jeremy asked, trying to pretend that this scene wasn't happening.

Ulrich, who was still standing in the same spot, instantly interrupted whatever Aelita's answer had been. "Yeah, well if she does, tell her: _THANKS for **WASTING MY TIME**! Because instead of going out to look for more hard-drives and spare parts like I **SHOULD**—I gotta go out and look for HER **INSTEAD!**_"

He emphasized the last word by slamming the box he carried onto the ground. Jeremy had never seen Ulrich quite this mad before. So he failed to realize the danger until the box landed top of his foot. Moaning loudly in pain, he leaned down to cradle his injured limb.

"What was that?" Aelita asked, having heard Ulrich's rant and the following crash.

Limping toward an empty section of floor to sit down on while Ulrich, still fuming, returned to retrieve another box, he answered, "Ulrich says 'hi.'"

Jeremy hadn't gone two feet before Odd was once again on his heels grabbing for the phone. "Gimme!" he chanted. "_Gimmegimmegimme_!"

"I'm not sure how long this'll take," Jeremy said as he tried to talk over Odd. Aelita, he guessed, could barely hear him over Odd. "But I'll call you after school to let you know—" Finally succumbing to Odd's rant, Jeremy turned to the phone over toward him but not releasing it. "_ALL RIGHT! All right!_ Here!"

"Aelita," Odd called out. "It's Odd! I'd just like to say: _HEL-LO!_" He then proceeded to make obnoxious kisses into the speaker. If he'd planned to say anything else, it wasn't meant to be.

"_WOULD YOU GIVE ME THAT!_" Jeremy bellowed as he tried to yank the phone away. Odd, of course, wasn't ready to relinquish it yet and tried to pull it back.

Unknown to either boy at the time, but on the other end of the line Aelita was having a very hard time to keep from laughing out loud in the cafeteria at the antics of her friends.

* * *

**(A/N)** Consider yourselves lucky that I was able to squeeze in these three chapters before leaving today.

I hope you really liked this chapter in particular. I had an extremely hard time writing this. Not because it difficult (far from it!), but because I had to constantly stop and have a laughing fit! This chapter is probably my most favorite so far! I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it!


	13. Race Against Time

**(A/N)** Oh my GOD! _NOW THIS IS MORE LIKE IT!_ You guys have _NO_ idea how surprised and jubilant I was when I realized the number of reviews I acquired from you. Why can't I get this kind of feedback more often? 

Some of you have brought up some very interesting points. I will do my absolute best to answer the questions asap. Plus I have to good news. My time at Fort McCoy these past two weeks haven't been in vein. I was able to witness three new Season 2 episodes and I guarantee that you will be seeing what I learned later in the story.

I don't know how many people are there or when they are coming back, but I dedicate this chapter to all our brave soldiers who are serving or served our nation in the past four or five years. (Excluding myself.)

I hope you all will pray for their safe return home with me.

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Race Against Time_

It was strange; Jeremy realized. Now was the perfect time for Xana to attack continuously and not worry about them ruining his plans. However the super computer seemed content to have Jeremy and Aelita raking their brains in an attempt to repair the time reversal.

Unless, he quickly feared, that this was only a stepping-stone in Xana's latest scheme. This prospect scared Jeremy and caused him to redouble his attempts. He had spent the better part of the four days now since the attack trying to fix or replace the fried circuits of the program. He was often caught skipping most of the day's worth of classes and spent as much time at the factory as he could. This change in behavior quickly angered the principal and Jim.

But it was lucky that Jeremy had taken to avoiding Jim as a new form of art. One that he excelled at remarkably.

* * *

The humid air and hot Wednesday sun beat down on his shoulders. Dressed in his white shirt again, it quickly became loose a fit it was on him. Pulled back by the wind and drenched in sweat, the shirt was like a second skin. Flapping wildly in the wind, his bandana proved its worth yet again. 

He ran to keep himself in top physical condition. He ran to feel the familiar burn of his muscles. He ran to recover the strength that he'd felt he lost while healing. He ran to keep himself free of Sissi's never-ending monologues and whining voice. He ran to keep his mind off Yumi...

It was four o'clock when they found him. He was circling the soccer field and was breathing rather heavily from circumnavigating it so many times. He saw his friends as they left the school building and go their separate ways. Odd settled into his headphones and listened to his music, taking a break from the harshness of reality. William and Yumi were walking gradually toward the streets. Jeremy was running off toward the factory to finish the repairs of the Time Reversal Program.

Slowing his pace to a light jog, Ulrich's path of travel took him on a parallel course with Yumi...and William. As he approached, Yumi glanced at him suspicious eyes.

Though he wasn't sure what she was suspicious about, he'd wager anything it had to do with the theater attack. If she wanted to stare at him, that was fine. But he wished her expression had anything other than loathing or suspicion.

Ulrich settled down on to the bench beside Odd. After a moment, Odd caught on to his best friend's staring after Yumi. Though he would much rather continue listening to his music, he had a small burst of enlightenment. If neither of them made a move to talk, and soon, they would probably be at this awkward standstill for weeks or months or even years.

For one of the few times in his life, Odd became serious. Pausing his song and pulling his headphones down, Odd grasped Ulrich's shoulder gently and shook it.

"Don't be mad at Yumi," he said. Detecting Odd's tone, Ulrich gave him his full attention. He knew from Odd's voice that what he had to say was important, for once. "She only thinks that you abandoned her when you left. Plus, you really can't blame her for thinking that, either. You just up and disappeared, no note or even a good-bye."

Returning to his previous mind frame, Odd returned to his headphones. Thinking quickly, Ulrich stood and took off running after Yumi. Seeing his friend running after the girl of his dreams, Odd stood and left as well. There was an awesome new computer game he wanted to get.

Just as he was about to round the corner and go sprinting after Yumi, a horrible sensation rose in Ulrich's stomach. Like he was about vomit, but much less nauseating. It was feeling that he'd come to realize symbolized an approaching danger. He glanced back at Odd worriedly.

What if it was Odd that was going to be in trouble? He stood there for a moment. Torn between watching over Odd and chasing after Yumi.

* * *

Walking down the streets, Odd took a shortcut through the park. He was passing a clearing with his music playing loudly when things started happening. Because his music was so loud, he didn't hear the startled shouts or barks until he'd been tackled. 

Struck from behind, Odd landed heavily on his chest. His headphones slipped from his ears and his CD player snapped in two when it hit the pavement. But that was the last thing Odd was thinking about. A mouthful of sharp teeth had buried itself in his left shoulder!

Screaming in pain, Odd struck at what held his shoulder reflexive. His fist caught the dog, a golden retriever, in the eye. Releasing Odd instantly, the retriever thrashed about slightly. Pushing himself to his feet, Odd saw the retriever quickly return its attention to him and then he heard more barks. Lots more!

Not thinking twice, he ran as fast and far as he could from the crazed the canines. But it wasn't fast enough. He was tackled again. Fangs bore down on him: biting, tearing, and yanking. Odd was screaming bloody murder in his pain. He forced his eyes close so he couldn't see his body being torn and his blood pooling. Tears of indescribable pain were leaking out from the corners of his eyes as he feebly tried to repel the dogs.

Then there came a shout from somewhere nearby. The canines halted their assault and rushed past Odd's battered body. Managing to open one eye a sliver, he glimpsed a dark figure swinging something. Whatever that object was, it was able to cleave the raging dogs into pieces. It was barely lasted ten seconds before Odd fainted from blood loss and shock.

* * *

When he had first approached, Yumi almost walked away again. Ulrich had first tried to apologize to her, but the words got stuck in his throat and didn't come. It didn't help with William there, supporting and influencing Yumi. She only glared at him. When Ulrich had asked why she was mad at him, William answered before she could. 

"Why don't you leave her alone?" he demanded, standing up. "She obviously doesn't want you to be by her... If you're so desperate for a girlfriend, go get Sissi. You know? She was right: you two were meant for each other. You're doing the exact same thing that she always does to you."

As this thought raced through Ulrich's mind, he realized that William was right. He was doing the very thing that he despised Sissi for doing. He was begging and bugging Yumi to forgive him and be his friend again when she no longer wanted to know him anymore. Just as Sissi always was pestering him to like her when he was and is love with Yumi; he is annoying her while she is in love with William. William was right! This revelation made Ulrich sick.

Seeing that he'd found a weakness, William pushed on. "Now, why don't you pull that little trick you learned two months ago, and disappear! Everyone was happier when you were gone."

Then the bus arrived. As William walked Yumi on to the bus, Ulrich called out, "I'm sorry for being a thorn in your side, Yumi." The passion and pain in his voice was as thick as a milkshake. Even Yumi's newfound hatred of him was temporarily quenched by the evident heartbreak that he was experiencing.

Then the moment passed. They were absorbed into the flow of the six people as they entered the bus and the rest of the passengers disembarked. The moment was over but the feelings remained. For Ulrich, it was a tragedy. A sadness of proportions unknown to any who had never experienced a true heartbreak dampened Ulrich's already miserable mood.

He watched as Yumi as she took a seat near the window. Her face was turned toward William, lips moving silently as she spoke to him. As she spoke, a slow smile spread on her lips. Facing William, she said a couple of words and they leaned closer to each other. With a deepening fear, Ulrich watched from his limited field of vision at what happened next.

Yumi kissed William.

Barely able to breathe, Ulrich felt a strange knot of despair descend upon him. It contracted particularly hard around his heart. His stomach felt hallow and empty. All the love and happiness he'd ever felt throughout his life seemed to vanish in that instant. Then it was replaced with loneliness and emptiness. He had never known how much he had truly loved Yumi until that moment.

"Are you okay?" asked a boy.

Ulrich looked at him with cold, dead eyes. A gleaming stream of tears had rushed out of him without him even realizing it. Wiping his face, he blocked his feelings behind his emotional barrier as he nodded to the kid.

"Nice skateboard," Ulrich commented in an attempt to distract the boy.

"Thanks," the boy said proudly.

Returning his gaze to the bus, which was now pulling away, Ulrich noticed something on the instrument panel that made his blood freeze. Shining fiercely on the panel was the red eye of Xana!


	14. High Speeds

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_High Speeds_

Ulrich wasted only a second to snap around and snatch the skateboard from the boy.

"Hey!" the boy shouted as he tried to catch Ulrich.

Ulrich raced out into the street and threw the board under him. Yelling back to the boy as he caught the tailgate of a passing truck, he cried, "I'll return it! I promise!"

Pulling out his phone, Ulrich fumbled as he tried to hit the speed dial button to Yumi's phone and maintain his balance. He almost dropped his phone when the truck suddenly changed lanes.

As he steadied himself, he heard Yumi's angry voice in his hand. Lifting the phone to his ear, Ulrich heard her saying, "—understand about leaving me—"

"Shut up!" Ulrich snapped. Because he never told her to shut up or talked to her with such a tone, she obeyed. "Yumi, get off the bus!"

"What? Why—"

"Xana!" he cried and hung up his phone.

Stuffing the phone into his pocket, he swallowed slightly. The bus and the truck he was hanging on had just reached the top of a tall, steep hill. At the bottom of the hill were a highway intersection, a bridge, and a river. Any one of those obstacles could spell doom to the people on the bus.

_This is going to be harder than I thought_, he told himself bitterly.

* * *

Inside the bus, Yumi got up and raced to the front of the bus. There she found the driver with his face slumped down on the steering wheel. His hat had been knocked off and there were a bleeding cut on his head. Looking for the cause of the injury, she found the radio had broken off and hit the driver. The radio now rested in his lap and was slipping down perilously toward the pedals. 

William appeared behind her and accidentally bumped into her as Yumi reached for the radio. The sudden jerk forward caused Yumi to push the radio forward with her fingertips. It slipped off the driver's lap and landed on the gas pedal. The bus leapt forward uncontrollably.

Yumi fell down to the floor with William barely catching himself before he landed on top of her. Reaching forward, Yumi pulled the radio free and shoved it aside. William hopped over her and unbelted the unconscious driver from his seat.

At seeing the driver collapse into the arms of a young boy, the eight people on the bus began to panic. Two women came forward and tried to wake the driver as William heaved him into a seat. Yumi climbed into the driver seat and tried to steer the bus. However the wheels wouldn't respond to the steering wheel.

Then she saw the eye of Xana flash on the instrument panel for a second. Then before she could move, the seatbelt flashed over her, belted, and tightened itself. Yumi couldn't pull herself free; she was trapped!

* * *

Crouching down as low as he could go, Ulrich steadily gained speed. He quickly caught up to the speeding bus. Grabbing the handle of the backdoor, Ulrich prepared to open the door. But the bus unexpectedly jerked away and Ulrich lost his grip. Ulrich's own speed and momentum propelled him forward and down the bus's side. _Damn it!_

Changing plans, Ulrich now headed for the bus's front entrance. A flash of red on the window told him Xana knew of his presence. The bus suddenly jerked toward him in an attempt to run him over. Throwing his hands up, Ulrich was somehow able to not get knocked from the skateboard. He was shoved across the medium...and into the line of traffic on the opposite side.

* * *

A white blur in the opposite lane drew Yumi's attention. She watched in stunned silence as Ulrich recklessly weaved his way between the racing traffic on only a skateboard. _That idiot_! 

Dodging around a mobile home, Yumi saw that he was on an unavoidable collision course with a car. Due to the speed he was traveling, he couldn't possibly dodge around it again. He seemed to brace himself for the considerable impact. _Idiot_!

Seconds before it happened, she heard him faintly shout, "Oh, _SH—IT_!" Then he jumped.

Flipping over the car, Ulrich miraculously landed on the narrow skateboard. Steadying himself, he swerved back toward the bus as they finally reached the bottom of the hill and the intersection. His speed was so great that he actually passed the bus by four or five car lengths.

_What an idiot_, Yumi could help thinking admirably.

* * *

Dragging his foot slightly on the pavement as he passed over the empty intersection, Ulrich's speed began to slow as the bus picked up speed. Facing the bus, he saw the red eye of Xana glaring menacingly at him from the windshield. 

Then, Ulrich dramatically lost speed as he started coasting up the slope of the bridge. The bus loomed upon him like an engine of death as it entered the intersection. It was then that Ulrich realized that it wasn't as empty as he'd thought.

A petroleum tanker was crossing the same instant the bus was passing. With a deafening crash of metal on metal on pavement, both vehicles went careening out of control.

* * *

**(A/N)** HA! How's that for a difference? No drowning in this story! I'm slightly proud of this change. I wished I'd have thought of it in the first story. It definitely would've made it a bit more interesting to read huh? Since as things like this tend to happen with an alarming more frequency than driving/diving from a bridge.

What's going to happen to Yumi, William, Ulrich, and the rest of the people on bus? Find out in the next chapter! _Bittersweet Love_


	15. Bittersweet Love

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Bittersweet Love_

Everyone screamed for those horrible seconds. A little blonde-haired five-year-old girl screamed for her mother as she hugged a dark, bearded man for dear life. The man held her firmly to his chest with one hand in an attempt to protect her as he tried to keep from being thrown about like a rag doll.

The bus driver was pulled to the floor and went tumbling into a pair of women. They were screaming hysterically as the bus was rolled over several times. William clung to the driver's seat and, though silent, had fear written across his face. Yumi was screaming as she desperately tried to unbuckle the seatbelt.

* * *

Ulrich could only watch helplessly as the bus hit the tanker. The bus smashed its engine into the side of the tanker's engine. Both vehicles were smashed to the other's side for a second. 

Then the bus's momentum caught up with it and its back end lifted off the ground and slammed into the tank. Though he didn't and probably would never understand the physics behind it, somehow the momentum was enough to completely roll it over the side.

The tanker during all this was shoved onto its side, the heavy tank of petroleum kept pressing it forward until it was torn from the engine. By the time that the bus was rolling over the tank, it began its own roll down the highway for a brief time.

Ignoring the tank, Ulrich was slightly relieved to see the bus finally coming to a halt on its side. He didn't think twice as he raced for it. Just as he reached the bus's backdoor, a violent explosion threw him back several feet.

The back of Ulrich's head slammed into the pavement with punishing force, knocking him into a daze. He lay there for a moment. His head was ringing from the shockwaves, despite his having a strange buzzing sound in his ear. Only a vague thought ran through his mudded brain: _I hope this isn't permanent_.

* * *

The damage on the outside of the bus was actually far less compared to the inside. The windows had mostly shattered. Broken glass was everywhere inside; on the ground, in the seats, but especially seemed concentrated in wounds. The seats that had been on the side that slammed into the tanker had been ripped from their bolts in the floor. 

William found himself hanging from the driver's seat as the bus finally came to a halt. A warm liquid was seeping from a pain on his forehead and into his eyes. He wiped it away as he tried to steady himself. Leaning heavily on the driver's seat, he felt something touch his arm. Looking at the figure hanging suspended from the driver's seat by the belt, his eyes widened in realization.

"Yumi?"

Then the tanker exploded. The blast rocked the bus as the passengers covered their ears against the din. Thankfully, because the bus was on its side, the roof shielded them somewhat from its intensity. However, a strong wind was blowing the black smoke right into the bus.

When he was able to recover from it, William instantly began trying to free Yumi from the driver's seat. His efforts multiplied tenfold when he glimpsed smoke and flames rising from under the engine hood.

* * *

The dark man carried the crying girl with him as he headed for the backdoor. With the bus on side, the passengers couldn't escape from the front door. Or even the emergence window hatches. 

Climbing to the back of the bus, the man set the girl down carefully as he heaved on the handle. A smoke was entering the bus from the fire in the engine. With a thinning air supply all the passengers knew that they'd die soon. Throwing all his strength and weight into opening the locked door, the man yelled in his exertion. But the effort was futile: the door wouldn't budge.

Less than two minutes since it stopped, there was a gathering crowd outside. Many people were either being held back or were too fearful to approach the wrecked bus and semi engine. When a boy appeared out of nowhere next to the backdoor, no one had time to realize what he was about to do.

The man was still trying to heave the door open. Through the window, the man saw a dark shadow. In the dense smoke he couldn't make out the figure, even as it took hold of the handle of the door. Then the window shattered as a bloody fist shot through.

A fraction of a second later, a strong hand grabbed the man's shirt and hauled him rather roughly out of the bus. Without any further prompting, he climbed through the window. As soon as he was through, the boy silently slipped inside and began lifting people out. Within several moments the other passengers followed.

"Come on!" the dark man called inside while extending a helpful hand.

Shaking his head, Ulrich said, "Not yet!"

He turned and headed further inside with the dark man yelling at him to get out. Ulrich carefully checked everywhere while keeping low to the ground. He knew that there were still two inside. He found them at the front of the bus, in the heart of the smoke.

William, unwilling to leave Yumi, had passed out from the smoke. Yumi as it were seemed to have been unconscious long before the bus caught fire. Pulling William to a slightly safer distance, Ulrich was careful to avoid using his injured hand.

Rushing back to Yumi, he played experimentally with the buckle. But it wouldn't budge. That would've been too easy he realized. Grasping on the belt itself, he began to pull. Heaving with all the strength he could muster with one arm, the belt went taut in his grip. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to break.

Planting his feet upon on the seat, he tried again. This altered position offered no better results. Steeling himself, he grasped the belt with both hands. Pulling the belt from Yumi took on a whole new meaning of the word pain. An involuntary howl of pain escaped him for a moment. In that moment, he felt himself beginning to doubt his strength. How could he do this with only one good hand? Could he even do it if he had two good hands?

A glance at Yumi seemed to refill him with strength. He had to do it, to free Yumi and save her. Even if she hated him he could endure it, _as long as she was still alive_. Renewed vigor flowed through his veins. He pushed everything he had into pulling the belt free. Then, with a sharp snap of a pair of broken bolts, it came free.

Yumi's limp body fell on top of his as he fell roughly to the ground. Normally being so close to her would've a brought a blush to his face. But with the screaming pain in his hand and the direness of their situation, he thought nothing of it.

Several long minutes after the last of the people escaped, the crowd glimpsed a boy poking his head out of the window. He pushed another unconscious boy outside and into the arms of a medic. Next came a girl before he finally pulled himself out of the burning bus.

It didn't take long for medics on the scene to rush over to them. The people from the bus and the driver of the petroleum tanker were pulled into ambulances and sent to the nearest hospital.

By some coincidence, Ulrich found himself in the same ambulance as Yumi. While one medic was wrapping a hasty bandage over his knuckles, he watched as another attempted to rejuvenate Yumi.

He watched Yumi for any sign of life, but there was none. After several minutes of nothing, the paramedics seemed to be losing hope. They didn't really put up a fight when Ulrich crept forward and leaned over to his friend.

With a blank face broken by a single tear, he gently cradled Yumi. Cradling her face to his chest, Ulrich brushed her raven hair from it. Leaning forward, he whispered something into her ear. Even as close as they were to him, neither of the paramedics could hear what was being said. When Ulrich leaned back, he wiped the tears from his face.

Eyes snapping open, Yumi broke out in a fierce fit of coughing. Rolling on to her stomach, Yumi proceeded to cough for several minutes. The paramedics instantly were at her side pressing an inhaler to her face. When she could breathe without a coughing fit, Yumi pushed herself up into a sitting position.

"Yumi," Ulrich said quietly. "I'm glad you're alright."

Looking at him in confusion, she tried to remember what was happening. With his hands hidden behind his back, Ulrich watched her with a small smile.

"You are one lucky girl, miss," one of the paramedics said as they pulled into the hospital. "If that boy had pulled you out a few minutes later, you probably would've died."

"Who saved me?"

"I don't know where he is, miss," the medic said. "But I'm sure you'll sure him again."

During this exchange, Ulrich lowered his gaze to the floor. After a moment, he could feel her suspicious eyes on him again. He was pretty sure he knew what she was suspicious about but he'd never tell her if she was right or not. Frankly, it wasn't really her business.

"Young man?" his medic said. "What did you do to your hand to get it in that condition?"

The medic pulled his resisting arm from its hiding place. Yumi stared in surprise at the bandage wrapped around his knuckles. Even though the dressing was rather heavy, blood was soaking through it. The red stain was steadily growing larger.

Ulrich didn't answer.

"What happened to your hand?" the medic repeated.

Eyes narrowed in anger and disgust, Ulrich remained silent. He didn't want to talk about it with Yumi there. He didn't know what she would do, but he didn't want to risk it. But he could see that her interest had already been piqued and if he knew her, she wouldn't rest until she found out what happened.

"Ulrich," Yumi said quietly. "What did you do to your hand?"

Ulrich's expression didn't alter but he answered. "I smashed the backdoor window."

Yumi and the medics stared at him in surprise. Seeing their expressions, Ulrich pulled his hand from the medic's grasp and turned away from them. Seeing his action, the medic glanced at Yumi with an upraised eyebrow. A moment later the ambulance doors opened and they were separated.

Ulrich was lucky; he had to be rushed to the emergency room to have his hand cared for. Yumi, William, and the other passengers had to contend with the ever-aware press and reporters.

* * *

Friday came as a relief and a curse for Ulrich. Two days spent in the hospital while his hand was attended to were extremely boring to him. When he finally walked free of its constraints, Ulrich now sported new bandages on his torso, arms, and his wrist. The bandages, though necessary, hindered Ulrich's free movement slightly. For this, he resented them but didn't try to remove them, yet. 

"Ulrich dear!" was the first thing he'd heard when he'd reached the parking lot of the hospital. Leaning casually against her father's car, Sissi smiled brightly at him. A glance inside the car told Ulrich the obvious: Sissi had talked her father into transporting him back to school.

"I heard you were due out today," Sissi said as he approached. "So I thought it would be nice to pick you up personally."

Ulrich stopped a few paces away from her. Looking away from her in his disgust, Ulrich noticed the principal watching them. Moving forward, Ulrich knocked politely on the window. As it rolled down, he saw the principal smile politely.

"It's good to see you on your feet again, Ulrich," he said. "Well, come on. Get in, boy. I'm needed back at school."

"Sir," he said. "I appreciate the thought but the Ishiyama's have already promised me a ride."

"Oh," the principal said. "Alright. Well, I expect to see you in class on Monday. Come on, Sissi."

"One moment, Daddy," Sissi said as he rolled up his window.

Her eyes were narrowed in anger but Ulrich didn't care. There was very little he cared about anymore he realized. As Sissi approached him, she reached forward and took his right hand gently. Sissi studied the bandaging, sighed, and dropped his arm.

"What is it that makes Yumi so special to you? Even after she told you off in the park, slapped you, and caused you to ruin your hand. Please, tell me. Why do you still love her after all that? Why do you insist on loving a girl who doesn't love you?"

Ulrich turned a serious gaze upon her. His gaze was so powerful that Sissi felt as though he was looking through her and reading her thoughts. The gaze was frightening to her but she held it, determined to get an answer.

"Because I know she'll understand one day," he replied slowly. "And until then, I will continue to love her."

"But—"

"This is the reason, right now," Ulrich interrupted. He held his left hand up to her mouth, not touching her but having the same effect. Sure that he'd obtained her full attention, he lowered his hand slowly. "This is the reason you will never hold a place in my heart. You don't understand love."

Her mouth moved in denial but no sound escaped. After a moment, she dropped her face and quietly entered her father's car. Ulrich watched the car until it disappeared around a corner. When it did, he started walking down the sidewalk on his way to school. He had lied to the principal, which he regretted doing, but it was better than riding with Sissi.

* * *

**(A/N)** Hmm. Some things are different and some are the same. I personally just loved the scene between Sissi and Ulrich so much that I just didn't have the heart to change it! I truly believe that that scene is probably one of the truly in-character scenes of this and The Weak Link's entire storylines. This is also probably one of the longest chapters in the whole story.

I am afraid I have so very bad news. My parents are once again getting on my case to move out or get a job. While I have been trying, I just can't very anything and they have gotten ridiculously impatient. They have even gone as far as demanding that I pay _rent_ just to remain living in the house!

But the worst of it is that they've taken the powercable to my computer. So I can no longer work on Unleashing Valor. This will most likely be the last update for a very long time. _But that doesn't mean that I'm not going to finish it!_

So Ulrich saved Yumi and it seems that her opinion of him starting to change, doesn't it? But what's going to happen in the next chapter? So many new problems, accusations, chase-scenes—_oops_!

Until next time: _A Leap of Faith_


	16. A Leap of Faith

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_A Leap of Faith_

In her room, Yumi watched the recording of the fights in the Royal Knights' Temple. She had watched the video so many times in the past few days that she had it memorized. It had become an obsession to her to find the identity of the warrior. She'd followed up on every possible clue that the video had to offer.

She'd searched the Internet for hours for recent katana sales. During that search she looked for the particular hilt design and color of the sword. Then she searched for a fighting style that matched the boy's, particularly his strange hand movements. And finally, she searched for any further news of that individual appearing again. Aside from the little bit of information Odd was able to give her of his rescuer, all her searches proved fruitless. Now she left with only the video to search for answers or clues that weren't forthcoming.

The harsh ringing of her phone pulled Yumi out of her reverie. Pausing the video, she answered it. The caller ID had the phrase Unknown illuminated brightly.

"Hello?"

"Yumi?" asked a deep voice.

"Yes?" she said as suspicions flew through her head.

"Stop trying to learn who I am," the voice said darkly.

A shadow appeared on her floor. Turning, Yumi saw the boy that she'd been searching for. He was dressed in the same outfit as before and held a black phone to his ear.

"Who are you?" Yumi demanded. "What do you want from me?"

The boy didn't respond immediately. But when he did, his voice wasn't as deep and but was noticeably subdued. Barely above a whisper, he said, "I'm not of any importance to you."

Suddenly he dropped out her sight. As she rushed to her window and opened it, there came a click on her phone. Peering through her window, Yumi spotted the boy. He was sprinting for the empty street.

Yumi threw herself out of the window without hesitation. Landing lightly on the ground, she ran after him. He glanced behind him and spotted her chasing him. He sprinted for the narrow gap between to homes with Yumi hot on his heels.

She couldn't help but to grin. He was running straight for a high fence that he couldn't have time to climb. She was too close for him to try. She had him cornered! With this in mind, she began to slow slightly.

Therefore it came as a surprise when he leapt to the side of the house, pushed off, and sailed over the fence with ease. For a moment, she stared in shock. Then a memory flashed through her mind: him running along the walls of the theater hallway.

Suppressing a groan of frustration, she redoubled her speed. As she neared the fence, she contemplated how to cross it. Climbing would take too long and she refused to go around the house. That left only one-way: his way.

* * *

He had slowed to a walk. His heart was racing slightly from the adrenaline of having her chasing him. It was lucky for him that he was so acrobatic. Under his mask, he grinned foolishly. That little chase had actually been a little fun. 

Just as he was about to pull his mask off, he heard a grunt from the fence and the sound of feet landing heavily. He spared a glance and was surprised to see Yumi had jumped the fence. Her eyes blazed at him with fierce determination.

That was why he respected her. That determination.

Sprinting again, he glimpsed a nearby bridge. Grinning slightly he headed for it. Behind him he could hear her panting slightly as she gave chase. Though she was determined didn't mean that her body was ready for this level of exertion.

The two of them ran past the buildings and people on the sidewalk. They ignored their stares and concentrated on running. Then he did something truly reckless.

He ran across an intersection that was busy. Hoping back slightly, he narrowly missed a passing semi truck. Lunging under the trailer, he crossed over into the path of an approaching car.

Leaping as high as he could, he pulled his arms up and arched his head and back upwards. The car passed under him, just barely missing him. Landing in a crouch, he pushed it into a roll. On his feet in an instant, he ran for the railing of the bridge.

Behind him, he'd caused the traffic to come to a screeching halt. Seeing her chance, Yumi dashed across. She was able to cross without an incident thankfully.

Seeing her approaching, the boy stopped and climbed onto the bridge railing. Yumi watched him curiously. Would he do what she was thinking he'd do?

She slowed to jog as she was almost on top of him. He didn't move, save to put his hands into a position that she'd seen him do in the theater; thumb, index, and middle fingers joined and the other two curled.

"I told you to stop," he said carefully. "You'll only delay what needs to be done."

"What's that?" she demanded.

He didn't answer.

"Who are you!"

"No one of any importance." With that said, he leaned back and fell from the bridge. Yumi gasped and ran for the railing. Peering over, she watched as he flipped over and he crashed into the river below, feet first.

* * *

"_BWAHAHAHAHAHA!_" 

Pausing only to gasp for air, Odd resumed his preposterous laughter. His howling left him panting and he had to force his eyes closed to hold back tears of mirth. Just when he thought that he'd gotten back under control, he'd peeked out at the sight before him and resumed his howling. He was laughing so hard that he was doubled over on the ground.

"It's not funny," Ulrich growled as he tried to wipe the already smeared mud and water from his face.

"Oh! Yes it is!" Odd gasped out. He grasped his aching chest, kicking the floor in an attempt vent his pent-up humor. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, _yes it is_!"

Ulrich was covered from head to toe in mud and water. Though he was able to get most of the mud off, it still was smeared into his clothes and hair. The water also had his clothes clinging to him like a second skin.

Grunting slightly, he ignored his howling friend. Gathering a fresh bundle of clothes from his drawer, he left to wash himself of the grime. Odd was still howling five minutes later when he heard his phone ringing.

Forcing himself up, he grasped his phone from his bed. As he answered, Kiwi leapt up to his lap.

"Hello?" he gasped out, petting Kiwi.

"Odd?" It sounded like Yumi. "Is Ulrich there?"

"Kind of," he fought to control a fresh wave of giggles. "He just got back and is taking a shower… Why? Do you wanna join him?"

"NO!" was her instantaneous answer.

"Sure," he said grinning.

"What's so funny?" Yumi demanded.

"Oh…nothing," he said with as much offhandedness as he could muster. "Except for the fact that Ulrich is _covered_ _in mud_!"

"What?" Yumi asked surprised. "What are you talking about? How did that happen?"

"He says a driver sideswiped him while he was walking back here," Odd broke out in fresh laughter.

"Really?" There was something in her voice that caused Odd to stop his giggling. "And he just got back?"

"Yeah," Odd said, unsteadily. "Why? Is something wrong?"

There was a small pause before she answered. "I think so… Have you noticed him doing anything strange lately?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know!" she snapped. "You tell me!"

Odd thought briefly. Aside from that incident with Clayton and Aelita in the cafeteria, he couldn't think of anything in particular that could be deemed as strange. "I don't know… Is there something you need?"

"No," she answered. "I was calling to check up on you guys."

"You saw me today in school," he pointed out with a grin.

"You know what I mean," she growled, exasperated with him.

"Yeah, yeah." Outside he could hear Ulrich approaching the room. "Listen, I need to go. I'll tell you if I notice anything. Okay?"

"Okay."

"See ya!"

"Bye."

* * *

He was with Odd as dusk's last light was fading from the walls of their dorm room. Ulrich was at his desk while Odd lying on his back, playing his gameboy and petting Kiwi absentmindedly. 

Ulrich was hunched over a notebook trying to study for science. At least that's what he was pretending to be doing. Partially hidden under his textbook was an old photograph of Yumi.

Then Odd's phone rang next to Ulrich and sent Kiwi into a string of barks. Looking up at Ulrich, Odd paused his game and waited. Rolling his eyes slightly, Ulrich tossed the phone to his friend.

"Hello?" Odd said. "…Who? …Oh, yeah he's here."

This caught Ulrich's attention. Watching Odd, he waited patiently for him to finish. Odd grew oddly serious as he listened to whoever called. Then a grin spread on his face abruptly.

"Yeah, sure!" Odd said with laughter. "As if that would ever happen! Oh! And how did you get my cell phone number anyway, Sissi?"

Odd flinched and jerked his phone from his ear. A stream of loud curses and screams erupted form the phone before Odd could hang up. Odd had a triumphant smile on his face as he stuffed his phone into his pocket.

"Guess I struck a nerve," Odd said as he returned to his game.

Nodding, Ulrich returned to his picture. This was the only way he could admire her anymore, he realized. Her face caused that horrible knot in his stomach to tighten again.

Then that terrible memory of Yumi kissing William made itself known. The knot tightened its grip dramatically. Though it wasn't physically painful, it was excruciating for his heart and soul.

* * *

Crickets sang loudly in the moonlight. The cloudless night allowed the full moon's light to flood into the room unhindered. The window was slightly ajar and a warm breeze seeped in. All was calm, quiet, and natural. 

Then Odd's phone rang from his dresser. Kiwi, sleeping on the pillow with his master, woke and began barking loudly. Groaning but awake, Odd climbed out his bed and quickly answered his phone.

"Hello?"

"Ivan?" asked a feminine voice huskily. "Could you come over? I've got a _very_ special treat for you."

Odd's face burned hotly for a moment. Then a devilish smile crept up his face. "Sure," he said. "I'd love to except one minor detail…"

"What's that, Honey?"

"My name isn't Ivan," Odd said. Picking up Kiwi, he continued speaking. "He's around here somewhere, though. Hang on a moment… Ah, here he is."

Holding the phone to Kiwi, he let the little dog sniff it. When the woman began speaking, Kiwi began barking fiercely. Taking the phone back to his ear, Odd said, "I think he said he'll be right over."

"You immature, little son of a bitch!" screamed the woman. "If I ever get my hands on you—"

"Maybe you should pay more attention to who you're calling," Odd snapped and hung up.

Putting his phone back on the dresser, he glanced over at Ulrich. But he was gone. The bed was clearly illuminated in the moonlight and the sheets were thrown back. Doubling back, Odd took his phone and dialed Yumi's number.

"Hello?" asked a sleepy voice.

"Hey, Yumi," Odd said. "Remember you wanted me to tell you if Ulrich did anything strange?"

"Yeah," she said, sounding more awake.

"Well, does disappearing in the middle of the night count as strange?"

"Yes," she said wide-awake. "Yes, it does. Thanks, Odd. You should get back to sleep."

Yawning, Odd didn't bother fighting. As soon as he had lain back down, he was asleep. In his dreams was a young woman screaming at him as he barked like dog and juggled phones.

* * *

Yumi crept as silently as she could out of the front door. Running to the street, she stopped and hid in the shadows. Sure that no one was following, Yumi walked to the factory. 

_Knowing Jeremy_, she thought, _he'll still be there_. The repairs were nearly finished and Jeremy had spent little to no time outside of the factory. He ate, slept, and worked there. The others had to bring him his meals and would take turns spending time and helping him. Tonight was her turn, even though it should've been Ulrich's.

_Ulrich_…

She forcefully shoved his face from her mind. She didn't want to think about him. Had this been a week earlier, it would've been incredibly easy to do that. But not anymore. Since he'd returned, Yumi, despite her misgivings, had noticed there was an aura of sadness and pain about him. Like he'd seen something only a few days ago that was tearing him up. Like he'd knowingly and willingly done something so terrible that it had shaken him to his soul.

He seemed even more mysterious then before.

Then her thoughts turned to William. That kiss on the bus had been her first. William had told her that she was free to do what she wanted. Ulrich wasn't the one she loved anymore; it was William. It was then that she'd decided to show them both whom she cared for. Though she hadn't seen his, Yumi felt that she could've guessed what his expression was with a reasonable degree of confidence.

Ulrich's face once again rose into her mind as memories flashed through her mind, old and new. Even though her mind wanted to forget him, her heart had different ideas. She relived again those moment in Lyoko when he saved her. Then she remembered his reaction when they were in the ambulance. He seemed dead-set against telling her anything.

She was still mad at him for disappearing. Back when he'd first disappeared before the dance, she had been hurt. She'd been really looking forward to dancing with him. Then he up and disappears. It seemed logical to her at the time that he was just blowing her off. To take her mind off of him, she danced with William instead of him. It was that night that they'd gotten together.

Then when Ulrich returns, he expects everything to be the same way as before? Having exhausted her frustration with him, Yumi was once again forced to ask the question that had gone through her mind at his disappearance.

_Why_?

Bumping into something Yumi recoiled. Getting her bearings, she realized that she was standing at the entrance to the factory. As she entered the clash of steel on steel and the sound of running footsteps and screaming could be heard.

* * *

**(A/N)** Whew! That was a long chapter! I was even tempted to split it in two. But, then again, it seems fine as it is now. Forgive me if Ulrich and Yumi were once again OOC during the ambulance ride. I just wasn't thinking too clearly at the time and I was rushing it to satisfy you guys at the time. 

So, here comes one of my more favorite chapters from TWL. I'm sure many of you know what's suppose to happen on the other side of the door. But here's a question for you…

Will it?

Next time: _Dancing on a Knife's Edge_


	17. On a Razor's Edge

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_On a Razor's Edge_

_The dull thuds and whacks of wood on wood and wood on flesh sounded from a pair of swordsman that was training. They fought with a ferocity that in the outside world was unheard of. But in their tiny village it was an everyday event._

_Ducked under a slash, he brought his wooden sword up in an arc. Tadashi managed to jump back and the sword passed through the air without even touching him. Taking a cautious step forward, he gave a fast jab at the boy's extended wrist. The wood slapped his hand, sending confusing sensations of numbness and pain up his arm. His sword dropped from his nerveless hand as he backed away, holding it gently._

_Standing with his sword on his shoulder, Tadashi let a satisfied grin on his face. Almost carelessly, he glanced over at his grandfather and Taki who stood several paces away. Riyo was expressionless but Taki wasn't. She glared at him for a moment then turned her attention back to her strange friend._

_As she started approaching, he gingerly tested his hand. Flexing his fingers slowly, he could feel that it would be sore for several days. But other than that, it was just fine._

_He was going to kill Tadashi for this. He hated being hurt like Tadashi was doing to him everyday, without fail. It was maddening, infuriating… in fact he just couldn't think of the proper word to use. But his anger rose with each pulse of pain that raced from his hand to his brain. Then, Taki's shadow enveloped his hands and he looked up at her._

_Holding his fallen weapon out, she looked at him carefully in the eyes. As he took the sword, she said, "_Please, my friend, do not think… just fight_."_

"_Just fight?"_

"_Hai," she confirmed. "Just fight."_

"_Just fight," he mused as she bowed and hurried back to her former position._

_Closing his eyes, he let his breath out and drew in a slow, deep one. With all his self-will, he made his mind go blank, only Taki's words remained. _Just fight_. With difficulty he suppressed his anger and slowly opened his eyes. _Just fight_. Standing in front of him was Tadashi. _Just fight_. Then in an instant, he understood._

_He understood what she meant._

_It was like an awakening in his brain. Everything seemed to be in perfect alignment with one another. He just couldn't describe it: the wind pulling at his hair and clothing and the rustle of the trees and their leaves. It was as if he had become one with his surroundings. Everything had lost its identity, including him._

_He watched his opponent as he slowly flexed his grip on his weapon and brought it up into position. He could see the look of concentration on his face and he knew that he was in the same mind frame. He didn't even notice himself setting up for an attack; _it was all instinct

_Then, they struck._

_The clash of their weapons sounded loudly as they struck head on with one another. Drawing his weapon back, he stepped back, avoiding his opponent's following kick. Bringing his sword down in an arc, he hit only air as his opponent leaned out of the way. As his opponent brought his own sword up in an arc, he used his momentum to duck under it._

_Lunging to the side, they rolled off each other's backs, swinging their weapons full force. Then, with a burst of speed, they brought their swords up to the other's throats without touching._

_A draw._

_Then, as suddenly as his awakening had occurred, it disappeared. He became himself again. In his mind replayed the fight that he'd just fought. To his utmost surprise, he realized that he and Tadashi had been fighting with speeds that no normal person could possibly comprehend. He was greatly surprised to find himself breathing as easily as he would walk down a path._

_It was startling; had he been able to move like that only because he'd lost all identity? If that were true, it would explain why he'd been being beaten everyday. He had been slow, much too slow. He wasn't sure if he was relieved to have found this discovery or not._

_He barely noticed Tadashi's surprised expression and following bow of respect. Snapping from his revere, he bowed as well. Looking back toward Riyo, he saw a look of pride on his face. Riyo knew what he'd found mere moments ago. He knew that the real test would soon begin.

* * *

_

Grunting in his aggravation, the warrior stopped his stretches to collect his thoughts. Even though it had been a while since it happened, those memories always seemed to creep up on him when he was least suspecting. Good memories, happy memories…which only ended in sorrow, pain, and heartache. 

They always came back.

Dressed in a black vest over a sleeveless shirt, he face was once again covered. In his gloved hands was the katana that meant the world to him. Now that he was healed enough, he pushed himself very hard in his strenuous training regime.

The mask was a simple pair of handkerchiefs again. The top handkerchief was pulled down over his dark eyes which where glaring unseeingly through the eyeholes. The second half covered his cheeks, nose, and lower face. There was only a sliver of an opening between them, which allowed a person to see that the mask was two separate pieces. However, covering his eyeholes was a strip of cloth, effectively blinding him to his immediate area.

Sighing slightly, he resumed his workout. Swinging and slashing his katana around him in deadly arcs, he focused on his surroundings through his other senses. His awareness of his surroundings multiplied in leaps and bounds whenever he allowed it come out.

As it was, he was more concerned with not cutting his katana blade into stonewalls or stray piece of old machinery. The routine itself was as much instinctive to him as breathing was.

Thus when the entrance to the factory suddenly creaked open, he was able to detect it. The small gust of wind from the closing door sent a faint scent of a familiar person up his nose. It was a girl he knew.

Yumi.

Grinning under his mask, he began focusing on his routine. He turned his already fluid movements into graceful swirls and steps. It appeared as though he was dancing.

_Showoff_, his conscience barked at him. That only caused his grin to change into a devilish smirk of pride.

He could feel her eyes upon him. She watched him for several minutes, crouching as low to the floor of the platform as she could. Then, slowly and cautiously, she started to move closer towards him.

She was incredibly quiet about her movement. Had he not been able to smell and hear her, he wouldn't have even noticed her approach. She worked her way down toward the pile of his weapons he lain on the floor.

Realizing what she was hoping to do, he stopped in mid-swing. Faster than the eye could follow, his hand dove into a pocket of his pants then re-emerged with a pair of blades. Even with his eyes covered, he cast the shuriken stars roughly over at her.

Yumi, who'd been in the process of picking up one of his katana, froze instantly. _Shit_, that the only thought that raced through her mind. There, imbedded in the concrete in front of her hand and on the wall by her face, was a pair of still quivering shuriken-throwing stars.

"Bad idea," the warrior said indifferently.

Standing up, Yumi faced him. In the darkness of the factory, she'd not been able to notice it before, but now she was surprised. He wore a strip of cloth over his eyes. That would mean that he'd somehow known that she was there, despite how quiet she'd tried to be, and had hurled the shuriken at her blindly.

_Either he's extremely talented_, she thought nervously. _Or he's extremely lucky_.

"Yeah," she said, trying to pretend that she was as confident as she wished she were. "But it was worth a try."

Sheathing his katana, the boy removed his blindfold. Dropping it, he looked at her as he tilted his head slightly to the side. A smirk pulled at his lips but he suppressed it.

"You can take that dumb mask off," she said in a forceful voice. "I know who you are."

The boy was silent for a moment as he just stared at her. Then, abruptly, he broke out laughing. "Really? Who am I?"

"You're Ulrich," she said without hesitation.

"Sorry," he said merrily. "Who's that?"

Snorting arrogantly, Yumi decided to set her case. "You were stabbed in the shoulder at the Temple. So was Ulrich. Now isn't it convenient that you and Ulrich would have the same wound on the same shoulder?"

"Considering the fact that you're accusing me of being someone I'm not," the boy said seriously. "I find that awfully convenient."

"Plus," Yumi continued. "When I was chasing you through town, you dove off that bridge. Then I learn that Ulrich comes back to Kadic covered in mud and drenched. Especially when he was suppose to get a ride from Sissi."

"Just one big coincidence," he declared adamantly. Smirking, he walked over to a pillar and leaned against it. He rested his hand on his katana, ever ready. "Although that chase was a lot of fun."

"Well then," Yumi said, grinning. She had him now; she could feel it. "I suppose I could just call Ulrich. After all, if you're not him and he's supposedly in Kadic, you won't have to worry about your cell going off."

As she was reaching for her cell phone, she heard a gasp from the boy. Looking up, she saw him suddenly grasp his head. His knees buckled and he collapsed on the floor, thrashing.

Confused, Yumi rushed forward to see what was wrong. It was only when she was got closer that she could see a dissipating mist covering the boy. There was something about the mist that gave her the creeps. Despite her desire to help the boy, and possibly unmask him, she stopped approaching.

Something wasn't right.

* * *

He was in pain. Writhing about, he tried to overcome it. It felt like something was trying to pry his mind open. He could feel it digging its claws into his consciousness. Darkness filtered into him and he couldn't stop it. Like was an anaconda, it wrapped itself around him and began squeezing and crushing his defenses. 

As would an arrow through tinfoil, it suddenly dove inside him. In his mind's eye he stared in shock at another's eye. It ignored him as it began shuffling through his memories. He didn't know what it was looking for or what it was even doing. He just knew that he didn't trust it. It was a primal fear that reacted instantly.

The eye was somehow familiar, yet he couldn't place it where he'd seen it before. Then he slowly began to feel comfortable with it. The feeling of unrest began to settle. He could feel a comradeship with this being.

It wanted to help him prove himself to his friends and family. All it was asking in return was one thing. In another time and place, he'd have been repulsed by the idea: but not today. It had one desire, one request from him.

_**KILL THE GIRL!

* * *

**_

Yumi watched as the boy thrashed on the floor in what was obviously pain. Then, abruptly, he stopped and sat up. If she'd felt any relief by this, it was instantly crushed. In the faint light of the moon, she glimpsed a symbol flickering in his eyes that she'd seen too many times. His body glowed the signature golden of a possessed being. 

"XANA!" Yumi cried.

Seeing the boy reaching for his pocket, Yumi turned and sprinted for his stash of weapons. She heard him give a grunt of exertion and ducked herself instinctively. A shuriken sailed over her, mere millimeters where her head had been moments before.

Diving forward, she snatched the first weapon that within her grasp. A golden hilted katana. Twisting around, she was able to raise the katana in time to halt the possessed warrior's charge.

He stared at her for what seemed an eternity. The Xana eye flickered constantly in his eyes. It almost seemed as though there were two people inside him, one trying to attack and one trying not to.

Pushing the tip of the katana none too gently into his chin, she said, "I don't want to fight you. Xana has control of you; fight it!"

Finally after what seemed hours, he gasped out, "Yumi?"

The katana in his hand twitched slightly. Then it fell limply to the ground. While the hand that had held the deadly blade dropped to grab it again, his other hand intercepted it. Holding his wrist tightly, he slowly lifted it up as his knees buckled again.

Backing up a step, Yumi watched in confusion and fascination. If she hadn't known otherwise, it would seem that he was literally fighting with himself. While she had every reason run for help, Jeremy was still here after all, or knock the boy unconscious. Yet she couldn't seem to move herself.

His eyes drew her attention very quickly. His pupils were flickering constantly between the Xana symbol and his dark irises. When it would seem as though one would start gain strength, the other would come shooting back. It was the same with the golden aura that was around him. Yumi could only imagine the seesaw situation that was going on in his mind.

He was trembling constantly with an occasional jerk from his limbs. His head was lowered to his chest. Then, abruptly, his face rose into the moonlight. A retched scream of pain and anger tore its way out of him. The aura flashed brilliantly for a moment before shattering like glass.

The evil eye vanished with that scream.

And in that flash, so did he.

Shaking her head, Yumi tried to clear it of the light afterimage. As she was slowly able to refocus on her surroundings, she became aware of how deathly silent it had become.

Looking around she realized that her hero had disappeared yet again. There was not a trace of him anywhere. All his weapons were gone. His clothing and uniforms, even his blindfold was no longer in sight.

Only the gold hilted katana in her hand.

* * *

**(A/N)** Oh man. I am SO tired! Not just because of how ridiculously late it is. But because of all the rewriting and editing I've had to do for this chapter. Some of you will notice that this is _Dancing on a Knife's Edge_. But with a completely new twist to it. Despite the number of reviews I got from you guys that loved that original chapter, I have never really appreciated it. Due to the fact that I was basing it heavily off of 'Mask of Zorro.' I felt compelled to rewrite it.

I'm sorry to say that the situation at my home has not improved. I'm still without my powercable and thus completely unable to finish this story. While I'm sneaking to the library for this update, I don't have the time to work on the story.If I'm here too long, my parents will get suspicious. So consider yourselves lucky to be getting this latest chapter at all.

This chapter is rather different, isn't it?It's raisingquite a few questions. Like:was the boy telling the truth about his involvement with the Temple? Is he really Ulrich, hiding like in TWL? Or is he someone else?

Please take note, however, one thing: _Yumi still gets possession of the katana_. How do you think that will affect later chapters? Please, send me you guesses.

I'm very curious what many of you ACTUALLY think of this story and where you think it's heading.


	18. Easily Forgotten

**YESSS!** Once again I've found a way around my limitations! Am I a genius or what! Well, I'm an idiot actually. For my method is extremely dangerous (metaphorically speaking) and my updates will mostly likely be few and far in-between. Plus there is the fact that I'm now limited to an hour on the computer and I'm living on my own now. But please enjoy and rejoice with me!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Easily Forgotten _

It was a very good thing that it was the weekend for Yumi. It didn't bother her parents that she was late to rise, or that she was very cranky when she finally did. After a measly meal of poptarts and juice, she had locked herself in her room.

It was late in the morning and Yumi was studying her new evidence. The katana was a more than just a mere sword she realized. It was a piece of art. The hilt was composed of black leather strips strapped tightly around it. The bronze hand guard had a wonderfully crafted battle scene etched into it. The scabbard was missing but she could guess it was made of the same black leather and bronze linings.

The blade itself had a beautiful curve to it and was as long as her arm. Engraved into the blade was an inscription of ancient Japanese. Though it was different than what she was used to, she could still translate it.

Samurai of the West? Dark Lord? Greatest Warrior of all Legends? These phrases opened up a whole new can of worms for her. Could the boy be from Japan? Or was he only trained in Japanese taijutsu? Was the sword only an heirloom that he was trying to live up to? Yumi toyed with these possibilities but none of them really seemed logical.

Lying on her bed, Yumi studied the katana's beautiful and deadly craftsmanship. She turned the sword over and watched the reflections of the sun glittering on the wall. Remembering the encounter as vividly as it had just happened, Yumi watched as the boy pranced around the floor. His moves were so fluid, so natural. It was as though he were dancing. His skills were far superior to her abilities.

With that thought in mind, she thanked all divine forces that be for her managing to gain possession of this single katana. It held several vital clues that she intended to investigate thoroughly.

Turning to her computer, she opened up the Internet. Each keyword she could use she searched for. Yukito Takei was the first. Several names came up. Scanning through them, she realized that all were either dead or their histories didn't match up. She could only get vague references to samurai, western civilization, dark lords of movies, and other useless trash that couldn't help her.

Just as she was about to quit, she found a small site in the history of Japan. Though it didn't give any information that she could use, it held a few lines of interest.

_It is said that the remnants of an ancient dynasty settled in the far reaches of Japan. Their dynasty had been thoroughly crushed and they'd been banished by the ninja that conquered them. They swore to return when a warrior greater than any of legend appeared and would reclaim their lost honor._

"Yumi dear?" called her mother from behind the door.

Returning to reality, Yumi quickly rose and snatched the katana. Leaning it next to her dresser, she pulled the curtains back over it. It was hidden from sight. With the window closed, the curtains wouldn't even twitch. To disguise any strange noise that she may have made, Yumi said, "Yes, Mom?"

"William's here," she said.

Smiling slowly, Yumi left room once she tucked her phone into her pocket. She found William standing outside the front door. When she opened the door, William's dazzling smile caused her to put aside all her thoughts and fears, but not hopes.

"Hey," he said softly when she walked out. "What happened? I thought we were going to the carnival at one."

"Huh?" Yumi's mind raced as she tried to remember what he was talking about. Then it slapped her in the face. In all the excitement during the past week, she'd forgotten all about her planned date with William today!

"Sorry," she said feebly. "I…I had some things I had to check out."

William watched her, as if trying to coax more information. But when none was forthcoming, he nodded and gently took her hand. Hand in hand, they walked to fairgrounds.

* * *

"Odd!" Jeremy called out, his irritation showing in his voice. "Hold it up a little higher. I can't see what I'm doing." 

Adjusting the electric torchlight he held, Odd grumbled. "As exciting as it is for me to stand here holding this, my arm's getting tired, Einstein."

"Isn't that true for all of us?" Ulrich said quietly as he loaded crates with the trashed hard-drives.

Soft footsteps went almost unheard among them as Aelita walked into the room. Glancing up, Ulrich gave her a small smile as she stopped next to him. Setting down the bag she carried, she called out, "Odd, Jeremy, I brought you some snacks."

Head snapping around, Odd's smile was the largest they'd seen it in a while. Gasping happily, he cried out, "Goody!" Glancing down at the light he held, he grinned evilly as he said to it. "Later!"

Tossing it over his shoulder, he made a mad dash for the pair. He never heard Jeremy's angry shout or the shattering of the light as he snatched up the bag.

Extracting himself from the panel he'd buried himself in, Jeremy's anger dwindled as he spotted Aelita. She was smiling at him and he was willing to bet billions it was because he was covered in small scratches and a light layer of soot. Setting his tools down, he made his way over to them.

"Do you think you could take a break for today?" Aelita asked. "The carnival is—"

Odd gasped, despite the sandwich in his mouth. Glancing instinctively at his watch, he realized she was right. "I completely forgot! That's it! I'm gone!" Taking his meal, he dashed for the elevator.

"Why didn't I hear about this sooner?" Ulrich asked quietly once Odd had left.

"Uh," Aelita tried not to smile feverishly. "So much has been happening lately, we forgot."

Looking at the floor for a moment, Ulrich chewed quietly on his sandwich. Jeremy and Aelita quickly struck up a conversation. So they failed to notice for several minutes that Ulrich had left.


	19. What's Left Unheard

**(A/N)** This is for all of you! I have been working myself to the bone to get this chapter out. I've tried my best to get back into the flow of it, but I don't think I did. Because I'm so strained, I think the characters may have gone a little OOC. Please forgive and inform me if so.

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_What's Left Unheard_

The carnival grounds were crowded. Should anyone have said that to him, Odd would've collapsed from laughing at the grotesque understatement. It looked to him like people from all over the country and even more tourists had arrived. Odd couldn't walk down the path of the fairgrounds in straight line had he even wanted to.

Stuffed unceremoniously into his pockets were tickets from various games that he'd all ready played and for rides he had yet to enjoy. He carried a ridiculously large teddy bear in one arm with a corndog and a soda in the other. From the grin on his face, one would think he'd finally found his true calling in life.

"Having fun, Odd?" asked a familiar voice behind him.

"A lot more than you know, Yumi," he answered as he turned around.

Yumi and William, though not carrying any obvious prizes, had tickets as well. William had what looked to be a ketchup stain on his shirt. Then he saw it. Tucked under William's arm was what seemed to be a picture or a poster, Odd couldn't tell.

"What'cha got there?" he asked motioning to William.

With smug, if small, smile, William brought it forward. It had a magnificently painted mountain cliff with a wolf howling at the moon. It was a very beautiful painting.

"Pretty cool, huh?" William asked, seeing Odd's expression.

"Yeah," he admitted.

"Oh, come on, Odd," Yumi said, grinning. "It's not like you've never seen art before."

"Sure," he said offhandedly. "But when all you see is billboard art and cartoons, you tend to lose your appreciation of it."

The pair nodded after a moment. It was true. Then Yumi suddenly looked up and around, looking for someone. "Where are the others?"

"Like I'd know? I left early," Odd said, grinning. Turning around, he added, "I'll see you guys later!"

As their blonde-purple haired friend ran off, the two of them felt a chill run down their spines. One glance at the other told them that they both felt it. A sixth sense told them that they were being watched.

* * *

Dinner was a picnic in the park. A simple affair of sandwiches, chips, and juice had left them all content for a while. They sat in the shade of an oak tree near the lake in the park. 

Yumi sat with William with her back resting gently against the trunks of an oak tree. Odd had joined up with again at the concession stand. Since it was far too crowded at the carnival, they made their way to park for a little peace and quiet.

Or as quiet as one could expect with Odd. He sung to a song from a new CD player in the branches of the tree. Though they were doing their best to ignore him, Odd's voice was beginning to wear on their nerves.

It was as they were about to return to the carnival that they saw him. Ulrich was standing down by the lakeshore, skipping pebbles on the water. Usually, Yumi would've tried to ignore him. But after that fight with that little warrior last night and her discoveries earlier, she found that she had come across several questions for him.

William was talking but she wasn't really listening anymore. Even though she tried, she couldn't keep her mind on the present. That warrior kept breaking into her mind and taking her back to those few seconds of when they'd spoken. It quickly became apparent to William that Yumi had other things on her mind.

Kissing her lightly on the cheek, William smiled slightly at catching her embarrassed stare. Knowing he had her attention, he said, "Heh, so…what's on your mind?"

"Nothing," she said. The last thing that she wanted was to tell him about her encounter. "It's nothing."

But he saw through her. "Something happen last night? What was it? You _can_ tell me, you know."

She glanced at him briefly. _I can't hide anything from him, can I?_ She nodded slowly. _I hope this goes well_. "I went for a walk last night and I found our warrior friend in that old factory."

"And?"

"I guess he must've been training there. I've…I've never seen anyone train like that before. It was as thought he was practicing for a dance lesson. Anyway, I tried to unmask him, but he…kind of blew me away."

She paused as she took a breath. Her face had turned red slightly despite her best efforts. William looked at her with a quizzical stare. "I tried to find out a few things about him, but he wouldn't tell me anything."

"Well," Odd suddenly said from above them. "Of course, he wouldn't!"

Glancing up, they saw their friend smiling down on them like they were a pair of foolish children. "He doesn't want to get swamped by the media when you start telling everyone!"

"Maybe," William said, offhandedly.

He had noticed that Ulrich had stopped skipping stones and was listening to the conversation with utmost interest. "But I'm not so sure. I mean, don't you think that this guy could be some psychopath trying to get the attention of a pretty girl from behind a mask?"

"No," Yumi said, looking away. There was an almost noble quality that Yumi had almost sensed from the boy last night. He wasn't there for fame and fortune, of that she w as sure.

Hearing the tone of her voice, William returned his attention to her. She was still hiding something he could tell. It annoyed him that she was doing that to him. _When she's ready_, he growled to himself.

Standing suddenly, Yumi said, "I'll be right back."

William watched her as she walked down toward the shore and Ulrich. Odd returned to listening and singing his music. Because of his friend's loud and off key voice, William couldn't hear what was being said between his girlfriend and her former best friend.

Ulrich sat a rock outcropping and dangled his bare feet into the cooling water. His shoes and socks were behind him on the rock. The warm evening fall sun beat down on his shoulders and back but he didn't even notice.

"Ulrich," Yumi said, stopping behind him. "We need to talk."

Glancing at her, he nodded. Then he began to picking through the pebbles that were within his immediate reach. Casting a stone, it bounced off the surface four times before finally sinking.

"Nice one," she said.

"Thanks."

After a hesitant moment, she said. "Why did you go to the theaters with Sissi?" To this day, she wasn't sure why she didn't ask him what was really troubling her.

"I _didn't_," he said fiercely. "She _blackmailed_ me."

This caught Yumi by surprise. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" she asked guiltily.

"You didn't let me," he said indifferently. "You wouldn't have listened anyway."

"I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"Are you?" he demanded, forcing himself to look out across the lake. "You've had all week to talk to me and the only things you've ever said are 'I hate you' and 'Leave me alone.' That's not being much of the friend I knew four months ago."

"Me?" she almost shouted in anger. "Who are you to talk? You've barely said two words to anyone since you returned! Besides, you were a lousy friend for leaving!"

"That wasn't my choice," Ulrich growled. Maintaining his gaze on the lake, he threw another pebble, which only bobbed twice.

"I seem to recall having saved you," he said quietly. "I do believe that the only thanks that I've gotten in return from you was the cold shoulder."

"How do you expect me to thank a person who has been missing for two months?" Yumi demanded. "What do you want anyway? A hug and kiss and eternal forgiveness?"

"That would do splendidly for starters," Ulrich said with the barest of smiles. "But, no, that's not it."

"Then _what_!"

"Is there a problem here?" William asked icily as he walked forward next to Yumi. 

"No, there isn't," Ulrich answered indifferently. He finally turned to the Yumi. His face was devoid of all emotion, except the cold external shell they'd come to recognize.

Turning somewhat hotly towards William, Yumi growled out, "William, now's _not_ the best time. I'm _trying_ to have a _private_ conversation here."

"Sorry," he said, grinning slightly at her. "It just looked like you needed help."

"The old Yumi wouldn't need help unless she asked for it," Ulrich said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

"So I've changed," she snapped angrily, facing him again. _Why won't he ever give me a straight answer anymore?_ "And I've changed for the _best!_"

William tried to gently nudge Yumi back toward the their tree or even the carnival, but she pulled away quickly. "In a moment," she said as gently as she could manage. Nodding after a moment, he turns and leaves. 

Kneeling down, Yumi selected a particularly flat and smooth pebble. As she looked at it, her anger evaporated. Facing Ulrich again, she handed him the pebble.

As he took it, Yumi noticed something she hadn't much earlier. Ulrich now had thick calluses on his hands. He no longer had the somewhat scrawny arms anymore; they were far more muscular and threatening.

"Why can't we be the same friends we were?" Yumi asked quietly, staring at the lake water.

"Because," Ulrich said, equally as quiet as her. "…you have changed… for the best."

Staring at the ground, Ulrich turned and walked away slowly. Yumi returned to William with a sad and confused air about her. As he stepped on to the path, Ulrich brought the pebble that Yumi had given him up to his face. Closing his fist, he gripped it tightly. He would keep it forever.


	20. Wavering Loyalties?

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Wavering Loyalties?_

Clouds had begun appearing in dusk approached on silent wings. Propelled an eerie wind, the growing cloud cover brought a cold chill down the backs of many. Starting as a small sprinkle, it quickly became a freezing fall shower.

Odd failed to notice the threatening conditions and now was running back to Kadic in the mud and rain. He would've gotten there sooner if he didn't have to stop at a dumpster to lighten his load of prizes.

**

* * *

**William and Yumi had just arrived at her house when the downpour finally fell. But she didn't really take notice. In her head was the scene of her trying to talk to Ulrich not so long ago. She just couldn't get one quote from her mind. '_Because…you have changed… for the best_.' 

Just what the heck did that mean? It had almost sounded like he said that he'd not changed since he'd disappeared while the rest of the world did. Along that line of thought, she grew angry. Of course she'd changed, everyone did, including him. So where did he get the godforsaken right to judge her? This seemed to be a brand of arrogance he was exhibiting; it was astounding.

"Yumi?" William's voice roused her from her contemplations. Looking up at him without really seeing him, she muttered a muffled 'what' before trying to return to her thoughts.

"Did you have fun today?" he asked, catching her glazed over eyes.

"Uh-huh," she mumbled.

He sighed quietly to himself. Something really big must've been on her mind if she was _this_ deep in thought. He had growing pit of fear he knew what it was that was bringing it about. Ulrich.

"You don't have to lie to me," he said quietly, yet surprisingly forceful that it snapped Yumi from her thoughts. "You've been absentminded for a while now. I don't know…but I don't think you really saw me today."

Well, Yumi was certainly staring at him now; in disbelief. Had she been so preoccupied by Ulrich that she'd completely ignored William while in the middle of their most anticipated date yet? The cold truth was simple and painful. Yes, she had.

Nodding to himself, William sighed again. He was fighting a losing battle. He could see that. He'd known it would probably get to be like this when Ulrich returned. But it was still painful to be proven right.

"Bye, Yumi," he said quietly before walking back out into the rain.

* * *

Aelita and Jeremy were stranded in the factory. Jeremy was once again buried in the hardware of the super computer. Aelita sat in his chair in front of the monitor and was idly scanning for any disturbances. So far there were none, thankfully. 

With a small smile, Aelita opened up the character profiles of herself and the others. She looked over them with a critical eye. No new alterations to their codes, no detected viruses, everything was good here.

Gazing over Odd's character, she spotted something that Jeremy had missed or neglected to upgrade. He could've increased the number of Laser Arrows that Odd could shoot to twice the current number. Why hadn't he done that? Oh well, she was quick to fix the problem.

Glancing over at Ulrich's character, she was more than a little surprised. His character hadn't been altered in the least since the last time he'd been in Lyoko! Bringing up the basic code for him, Aelita began modifying it to her heart's content.

Increased speed was the first that she added. She enhanced his Triplicate clones to be able to take greater damage. She contemplated giving him a secondary katana, but decided against it. After all, he did just fine with the one he had. Then she upgraded his clothing very slightly. It went from being a simple uniform to having light chest, shoulder, forearm, and shin guards.

She was lucky that she decided to end the update program when she did. For immediately after she had finished downloading to file into the supercomputer's memory, an alarm blared to life.

Xana had awoken.

**

* * *

(A/N)** Whoa. How's this? To be honest, I don't think that this is really up to speed on what it could be. I suppose that it's my fault. I've been unable to write this nearly as much as I'd thought that I could and so I think I'm slipping on their personalities. Dang it! 

On a different note, check this!

Chapter 20 for **Unleashing Valor**, we are only now arriving to the crisis of the story; where everything starts to go wrong. Currently we are at 32,676 words, counting all author notes, disclaimers, and titles. While in **The Weak Link**, we are at the first battle phase of Ulrich versus the copies alone and he's trapped. Up to that point in the story, there are (_I don't know the exact number, but a lot less_) words. Whoa, huh?

Yeah, this story is definitely longer than its predecessor.


	21. The Storm's Arrived

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_The Storm's Arrived_

It started as a common fall rain. But the wind picked up, thunder and lightning tore through the skies, hail and rain pelted all those unfortunate to be caught out in it. The weather service that'd been monitoring it all afternoon was stumped on this freak storm. It held all the ingredients for a hurricane or tropical storm, minus one thing: location. But they were fast to issue a storm warning to France.

* * *

In the factory, Jeremy and Aelita were staring at the effects the storm was having on the city. Everything that wasn't fastened down somehow was blown away by the typhoon force winds, including cars. Windows were being smashed by debris and the winds alike. Some homes were even torn to pieces, starting with the roofs. All electricity was down; whether from falling power poles or a problem at the generator it didn't matter. 

The factory was no exception. Holding tightly onto each other, they pushed themselves back down the service hatch. Shivering against the rain and wind, Aelita glanced up at Jeremy as they descended into relative safety.

"How can we warn the others?" she asked loudly over the wind. "Without the electricity?"

"I don't know!" he called back. "We'll just have to hope that they'll figure out that something is wrong!"

* * *

Ulrich slipped through the manhole and pulled the cover firmly back into place. Checking that it wouldn't be blown away, he was quick to climb down. At the foot of the ladder, he found only a trio of skateboards. 

That confirmed his suspicions. Jeremy and Aelita were at the factory. A gut feeling told him that he was needed there quickly. But the trip was going to be tricky; the sewage was rising fast in the rainwater.

* * *

The wind was pelting the hail and rain into her sides with unholy force. Yet she fought against it. Holding one hand out in front of her to block the rain from her eyes, she used the other one to feel her way through the darkened woods. 

Grunting in aggravation and exertion, she slammed her hand into the umpteenth tree trunk she'd encountered. Ducking around behind the tree, she let out a sigh of relief. Leaning back she fought to take her first decent breaths since starting this journey through the woods.

_It's lucky I know these woods so well_, she thought bitterly. _Or I would be hopelessly_. Pushing herself from her small cover, she continued her journey.

* * *

The Hermitage seemed no worse for the wear in the typhoon that was on the rampage in the city. Inside the room that had once been the living room, a hunched figure was sitting near a fire. 

Wrapped in a series of blankets, the person tried to remain as relaxed as possible. For in this storm, anything could happen. He would need a clear mind to be able to handle the changes.

Glancing at his old, beat up watch, he saw that it was nearly time to go. _Ten minutes_, he thought. A feeling of butterflies in his stomach consumed him as his fingers twitched uncontrollably.

Forcing his own fear down, he picked himself up. It was only his sense of duty that propelled him to turn around and further into the ruin. Lowering himself steadily into the basement, he glanced around. Nothing appeared to be out of place.

_Good, time to set up_.

Walking around the stairwell, he crouched down and opened the secret hatch. He dropped into the secret chamber without hesitation. It had taken him the better part of four days to find this hidden chamber, but he did. His sensei had been correct…

The chamber was small. No bigger than an average bedroom. Yet what was inside was of indescribable value to him. This meager room held a computer that he knew was connected directly to the supercomputer in the factory and it held a single scanner.

_Time to go_.

* * *

On Lyoko, all was peaceful. The only thing that could prove that there even was a disturbance was a trio of towers that were glowing red in the Desert Region. The sand dunes and wind beaten rocks were offered little cover to the scorching heat and blinding sun. 

With a slight humming-buzz sound, three trios of Flying Mantises appeared in the air. They separated and flew on silent wings towards their assigned positions. To the common observer, no one would've noticed anything different about the monsters. But there was something different.

The Xana eye upon each of the Mantises was noticeably different. It was smaller and almost seemed weaker than it had ever appeared before. A person would have to look long and hard to see it, but it was there.

Silently peeking over a large rock outcropping was a Tarantula. It didn't try to join the Mantises. It just watched them with moderate interest. What was going on now?

Xana watched with righteous fury as its monsters obeyed the orders of another.

**

* * *

(Author's Note)** Well, this was a feeble attempt at getting back into it. Though it is noticeably longer then the last few, I'm disgusted that I have to end it like this. But there are very specific thing I want to happen in the next few chapters, and it would partly spoil my surprises if I let them out too soon. Wouldn't it? 

So, what's happening now? Ulrich and Yumi are on their way to the factory, Jeremy and Aelita are waiting for help to arrive, a freak storm is tearing up the country, and a secondary link to Lyoko is being utilized. Wow, that's a lot of things to happen in one chapter, huh?

Please continue to update. I'll continue to write/rewrite as soon as possible.


	22. Trap!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Trap!_

"I'm here!" a familiar voice yelled out from the service hatch.

Aelita let out a relieved sigh. Jeremy nodded as he studied the supercomputer monitor. Their blonde-purple haired friend collapsed on the floor for a moment, breathing very hard and completely drenched.

"What's…going on…guys?" he panted out.

"Xana's created this hurricane," Jeremy said. "But it's very bad because the size and strength of it is unbelievable! It's covering most of western Europe. And from what I can tell, there are several more storms forming over Asia, the United States, Latin America, and Africa."

"So, it's just one planetary-scale attack, huh?" Odd said, forgetting his earlier exhaustion.

"Pretty much," Jeremy growled out. "Where are Ulrich and Yumi?"

"I don't know," Odd answered slowly. "I was walking back to Kadic when the storm hit. I ran here the whole way…Come on, Aelita," there was a deadly serious tone to his voice.

"Right," she said quietly

**

* * *

**When the two figures dropped into the digital world, they were unaware of being watched. High up on a rock ledge, a stubby head peeked over at them. It knew what they were here for. Normally, it would've tried to stop them. 

But now, watching them fly away on their Overboard and Overwing, it silently hoped for their success.

**

* * *

**The trio of towers loomed into sight. A churning red mist shrouded the entire immediate area around them, making visibility moderately obstructed. Aelita and Odd couldn't help but notice this as they approached. 

"Are you sure there are no monsters in this area?" Odd called out uncertainly. The flight to the Towers had been unusually quiet and the landscape was as deserted as the desert it simulated. It quickly made even Odd uneasy.

Stopping in front of one of the towers, they looked up at it. The same thought passed through minds; _this is_ too _easy_.

"No, I'm not picking up any monsters in Lyoko," Jeremy said. He was scanning all of Lyoko for even the slightest disturbance that resembled a monster. "The scans keep coming up clean. There don't seem to be any this in Lyoko."

It was then that something miraculous happened. Odd got an idea. "Hey, Jeremy, did you scan _inside_ the towers?"

"Huh?" the blonde genius was quick to jump to the request. After a moment, it came up clean. "No, I'm not detecting any inside either."

A sense of unease fell over Odd as he watched Aelita walk cautiously forward. Then, leaping to an instantaneous decision, he hoped on to his Overboard and flew straight inside the nearest tower.

A hail of laser fire greeted him upon entry. Throwing up his small shield, he was quick to dodge. The sight of three Flying Mantises was not a welcome sight.

"Jeremy!" Odd called out. "There are Flying Mantises in here!"

"What!" Jeremy cried, shocked. "Aelita! Don't go in there!"

Whether she'd have entered or not would never be none, for at that instant, Odd came flying out. He slammed into her and it threw both of them tumbling. Groaning at seeing his Overboard devirtualize next to him, Odd climbed to his feet aiming at the towers.

A familiar roar tore through the landscape as the pair boarded the Overwing. Aelita flew as fast as the Overwing could go away from the towers. Odd watched in fear and disgust as nine Flying Mantises emerged from the three towers.

"Aelita," Odd said. "we are in serious trouble."

Glancing behind them, she saw how true that statement was. Usually they only fought three of these beasts and it was hard enough. Now the two of them had to fight three times the usual amount. _Yes, we are in trouble_.

A large shower of laser fire rained down toward them as the Flying Mantises gained on them. Aelita immediately threw the Overwing into evasive maneuvers as best she could. Odd sent several volleys of arrows back at them but not one seemed to connect. With his haphazard footing and the jolting from side to side, Aelita was surprised that he hadn't fallen off yet.

"Aelita," Jeremy called out. "There should be a canyon about two hundred meters away around the next rock outcropping to your right. Go hide there."

"Alright, Jeremy," she said as she put the Overwing into a dive for the surface.

**

* * *

**Yumi came upon the ladder with a sigh of relief. As she tossed her skateboard to the side, she saw only one other skateboard and a scooter there. _That means one of them isn't here yet_, she realized. 

Looking up she saw a familiar figure near the top. It was Ulrich. There was something different about him than the Ulrich she'd come to know. He was wearing his familiar green again!

"Ulrich?" she called out. Intending to climb up the ladder, she jumped up on to it. "What are you doing?"

"The manhole cover isn't opening," he grunted out. She could hear the obvious strain in his voice. "It weighs a ton!"

"Here," she said as she climbed up. "Let me help."

"How?" he inquired, glancing down at her.

"Just move," she snapped.

Climbing up beside him, she joined him by bracing one foot on the wall, one foot on the ladder, holding onto the ladder, and pressing her back against the cover. Using the strength that she could muster out of the single leg that was holding her to the ladder, she grunted and groaned as she fought to lift the cover.

It wouldn't budge.

Ulrich watched her for a moment, a strange expression on his face. Then he resumed his own lifting. Straining with all their might, they fought to lift it. Slowly, painfully slowly, it began to rise a quarter of an inch at a time.

**

* * *

**

(Author's Note) Man! I never realized how needy all of you were! 'Longer chapters!' Jeeze, has anyone ever told you all how whiny you can be:D

Well, here you go. It's only a tiny bit longer. But things are really starting to pick up now. I'll bet the next chapter will be easily 3,000 words strong so try not to complain _too_ much.Just so you know, its taken me four hours (four days) just to write this much! So don't say that I'm not trying!


	23. Odd's Fury

I guess I have to thank a lot of people for helping to get me back into the mood to write again. Among them are these people: rockgoddess87, Rycr, Blueeyeblonde, Ulrich38, Mystic Dragon, and Haley-Demi. Thanks guys and gals for you time and words. Consider this chapter a very special thank you.

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Odd's Fury_

Sissi and the rest of the school cowered together in the halls of the first floor. The gale force winds were tearing up everything within miles. They generated an eerie howling sound that was close to deafening.

Covering her head with her arms in her crouched position, she couldn't do anything except pray that she would live. She didn't want to die, didn't want to, shouldn't, just _couldn't_! _Not yet_! She wasn't ready to!

In the minds of the rest of the students were similar thoughts and hopes for survival. But as the storm tore down doors, weak walls, and smashed windows, those hopes didn't seem to be anything than that.

Hopes.

* * *

"Look out! There's a monster on your tail!" 

Glancing around, Odd saw nothing but a large canyon. They were hiding under an outcropping that was barely large enough to cover them. Aelita kept her hands on the controls of the Overwing, prepared to fly away if they were spotted.

Now, because they were hidden and the Flying Mantases were so close, she wasn't sure if she should risk revealing their hiding place or not. The monster might not have spotted them.

"I don't see anything, Jeremy," Odd whispered.

"It's there," he said firmly. "Trust me."

"I don't _see_ anything," Odd repeated.

Then he saw it. It was that metallic ball that they'd encountered last time. It seemed to just peel itself from the landscape; directly above them. Moving faster than they could react, it had snatched Odd with one of its pinchers.

In a split second, he was lifted up and thrown high up into the air. Acting on instinct alone, Aelita launched the Overwing forward as fast as it could go. The circling Mantases spotted her in an instant and attacked.

Odd was thrown up to the top of the cliff. Reaching out, he dug his claws deep into the rocky surface as he began to descend. He slid a short distance before stopping. Climbing to the top of the canyon wall, he paused to catch his breath. His adrenaline had spiked dramatically in that moment of danger.

As he stood up, he heard Jeremy shout a warning. But it was too late. He was caught. Two tentacles wrapped around his waist, red energy pinning his arms to his sides as he was lifted up into the air.

Six more tentacles pressed themselves to his head as he recognized the only monster that could do this. The Scyphoza! A single, stray thought raced through his mind before the most excruciating pain he'd ever felt in his whole life tore through him.

_What is the Scyphoza doing here?_

**

* * *

**Even though she was ducking and weaving continuously, she could hear him. Odd's pained shout seemed to tear through all of Lyoko. It was enough to cause her to glance to the side to find him. 

It was that moment of inattention that caused a stray laser to slam into the Overwing. It jolted to the side unexpectedly, throwing her off, before dissipating. With a yell, she fell to the rocky surface below her.

Then a white and navy blue body appeared below her and broke her fall.

**

* * *

**Their strength was failing fast. They had barely been able to lift the cover clear of the opening and scoot it ever so slightly to the side. Now it rested, balanced precariously on the edge, while the two teenagers under it tried to catch their breaths and soothe their aching bodies. 

"What's holding it down?" Yumi asked. After they'd assured that it wouldn't fall back into place, she'd moved down the ladder to give Ulrich and herself some space.

Peeking through the sliver of an opening they'd made, Ulrich looked around. There was debris everywhere, water was gathering quickly around the opening and threatening to seep in. The wind was making a deafening howl that reverberated down the shaft into the sewer.

Then, in a flash of lightning, he caught the barest glimpse of something. It sickened him to realize what they'd been forced to lift from such a bad position. If he'd been in a good position _above_ it, he'd been able to easily move it. Of that he was very sure.

"It looks like a piece of debris has fallen on the lid," he said loudly.

Slipping his fingers into the opening, he tried futilely to pry it open. It wouldn't budge. "Yumi?" he called out.

"Yeah?"

"Try to find a pipe or something to pry with," he said as he continued his attempts.

Nodding, Yumi dropped back down to the surface of the sewer. The water had been steadily rising and now the effects were showing. She was up to her ankles in sewage water on the walkway and it was rising fast.

She had to hurry.

**

* * *

**To say he hurt would've been the understatement of the year. He felt as though he was being burned with white-hot steel, electrocuted with high voltage, and frozen so much that it burned his skin and innards. 

He probably would never know the correct term to use, but it also felt as though every cell of his body was being torn into. That something was invading him and sucking something vital out of him. He could feel it spreading from his head down his body. Moving very slowly, painfully slowly, but still moving. It left a hollow feeling where it had come and gone.

He once heard that in moments such as these people tend to lose their minds. They go crazy from the pain. They start seeing people and places, experiencing things that they'd never felt before. While all he felt right now was the pain and his eyes were shut tight in their torment, he did hear something.

A quiet voice in the back of his mind. The second that it began it's speech, the pain seemed to disappear to a dull ache. '_Let go_,' it said forcefully. Like it knew that he knew what he was hiding. What could he be hiding? He was just a kid in a hell of a lot of pain. '_You're not what you think!_'

It was then that an image flashed through his mind. The city was in ruins, bodies were everywhere. The sky was dark from the black smoke that was rising from the pride of France. The clouds and smoke were so thick that not a single ray of sunlight could pierce them.

As the image began moving through the city, the voice continued to speak and began to gain volume in his mind. '_Everything that you hold sacred is nothing but a pile of trash to this virus_.'

Odd saw a large building coming into view. He could recognize it anyway, even as ruins; Kadic Junior High School. There was a line of corpses outside the main entrance. Many of them were mutilated beyond recognition, but the select few that weren't he identified them in an instant. William, Sissi, Jim, the list went on and on.

'_This virus; it's a killer, a murderer! Killing innocent people is wrong! It'll destroy you, your friends, and your family._' He saw a pair of bodies that made his heart freeze; Aelita and Jeremy.

Even though they were easily the most devastated pair of bodies in the massacre, he knew them anywhere. He couldn't take his gaze from them, no matter how nauseous the sight made him.

Then the pain came back, but it was much more severe somehow. He felt an undying flame of hatred combust to life inside him. The most awful feeling he'd ever felt, far worse than the pain. This hollow fury made his earlier pain seem easily bearable.

He tried not to let it consume him. For even a simpleton knew that to fight in anger would only inhibit him. He tried to force it away. But the memory of that awful sight plagued his mind with the most unholy thoughts imaginable.

'_Don't be ashamed of your anger!_' the voice said almost soothingly. '_It's okay it hurts. It's okay to feel the rage_.'

Disturbing as it might've seemed, it actually comforted Odd to know that someone or something agreed with him. But what it said next surprised him. '_Harness it! Use it as a tool!_'

Then, he felt his self control slipping. Somehow, he knew that this voice was right. He had to let go and use his anger. It gave him strength. He could see it, almost touch, but he needed to _grab_ it! But how!

'_**BRING IT OUT!**_'

Then the dam broke.

**

* * *

**Aelita found herself on top of a Mantas. It was flanked by two others but none of them were shooting at her now. In fact, they were flying back towards where she'd lost Odd. As they approached, Aelita saw the last monster she'd ever thought of. 

_What's the Scyphoza doing here?_ This stray thought waved through her mind before. Then she saw who it was holding. Odd was thrashing about, clearly in the most indescribable pain ever. Aelita could only watch in horror as the Scyphoza continued unimpeded.

Aelita had to forcefully ignore her first impulse. That was to jump off the Mantas and try aid her friend. But she also noticed a disturbingly familiar black ball next to the squid monster. She'd never get close enough to help.

Then a scream tore its way out of Odd. It was unlike anything she'd ever heard before; full of pain, and hate. It sent chills down her spine at the eerie feeling it was giving her. It happened too fast for a comprehendible thought to sink into her mind. But the feeling that she seemed to sense radiating off of him gave her the impression that he wasn't screaming from the pain.

Then, his entire body seemed to ignite in a blinding flash of purple light. Aelita was forced to cover her eyes as the light was too intense and painful. Yet she could almost feel as though Odd was standing right in front of her. His presence was everywhere, and it was furious.

**

* * *

**The first blast of the energy that was pouring out of him incinerated the tentacles that were binding and touching him. The Scyphoza roared in pain as it dropped him, instantly trying to flee. 

The second his feet touched the ground, Odd was trying to lunge straight at the first creature he deemed as an enemy. The Scyphoza was the primary target. He was actually in mid-jump with his claws in front of him, ready to shred the monster to pieces, when something grabbed his foot.

Landing on his hands, he whipped his body around, swinging his free leg as he did so. The kick connected to and separated the arm of the metal ball from its body. As it stumbled from the lack of a balance point, Odd lunged forward.

He didn't care if this monster was the strongest to date. He didn't care if he got hurt or even if he survived. All that mattered was smashing these creatures of the most vile being in existence to nothing but piles scrap metal.

His fist hit and smashed through the metal plating of the ball right where the vulnerable eye was located. The metal felt like nothing but paper to him. It was shredded and he felt a satisfying crack as his fist passed through the eye itself.

Withdrawing his fist, he turned and dashed for the still retreating Scyphoza. He leapt for it and landed on the bubble above its eye. Drawing back his arms, he felt the energy radiating from his body change. It moved to cover and extend over his hands and fingers, forming long talons.

As he brought his first slash down across the brow of the Scyphoza, the demolished ball behind him exploded. But that wasn't important to him. He slashed again and again, trying to see how much of this beast he could tear apart before it too exploded.

He had actually dug himself a pretty impressive hole in the squid's head before it finally detonated.

As he fell to the ground, he felt his rage fade. It left him feeling cold, tired, and out of breath. Exhaustion unlike anything he'd ever felt in his whole life settled upon him. Not even his most grueling practice session and soccer game with Ulrich combined equaled to the near cardiac arrest state he found himself in.

He passed out before he'd even reached the ground. Leaving a stunned audience at what he'd just done.

* * *

Ulrich used the small pipe as best he could. But the frail thing kept bending, folding, and breaking. The cover had moved scarcely an inch. With the howling wind, cold water gushing in, and his extremely uncomfortable position, his slow temper had been roused. 

Growling dangerously, he stuffed the pipe into a pocket and once again resumed trying to scoot the cover off with his hands. If it had moved at all, neither of the teenagers could tell.

"How's it coming?" Yumi asked from below him.

"The same as it was five minutes ago," he grunted.

Sighing, Yumi nodded. At this rate, they'd be lucky to get to out of the sewer before the clean-up crews arrived in the morning. Glancing down upon the still rising water, she glared at it. It was now almost two feet deep on the walkway and the smells coming from it were really starting to unsettle her.

Suddenly the howling wind stopped. A silence so deep hung over them that it was deafening in a strange sort of way. Looking back up to Ulrich, she was about to ask about it. But the words never formed.

Through the small opening, she saw a bright purple light. Moving as quickly as she could, Yumi climbed up beside Ulrich as he peeped through the opening. The light was coming from the factory. It looked as though it just shot up from the roof. It continued to climb into the sky at incredible speeds.

It touched the storm clouds. Like a ripple in a still pond, the beam of light waved out through the clouds. As the light disappeared into the distance, the clouds that had been engulfed in its light dissipated as though they had never been.

**

* * *

**The weather service watched in amazement. Suddenly, when the storm looked like it was about to worsen, a tiny section over France started disappearing. They didn't know what caused this, but as they watched it continued onward and outward. 

Mere seconds later, the hurricane that had terrorized Europe was nothing more than a few scattered clouds.

**

* * *

**As the hurricane evaporated before their eyes, something else unbelievable happened. The factory suddenly seemed to explode in violent purple flames. 

Shock waves sent waves rolling through the water. Typhoon force winds raced away from the factory and blew everything that wasn't bolted down away; everything within a radius of a mile.

Including the steel debris that had held Ulrich and Yumi prisoner in the sewer, even the sewer lid!

Climbing up unsteadily, Ulrich braced for anything as he left the sewer. It was almost as calm as day. Helping Yumi out, they faced the factory in disbelief. Despite the fact that it was clearly just some kind of energy, it was strange watching a building surrounded in angry flames not to be burning.

Then they felt as though someone was there with them. Someone that they both knew very well, after all he was their friend.

"Odd?" they asked simultaneously.

* * *

**(Author's Note)** Whoo! That's a rush! I nearly forgot how great it feels to write like this. 

**P.S.** I've started a new forum and absolutely any questions and ideas that you all may have of me. Please do not hesitate to ask or suggest.


	24. Kunai and Shuriken

**(Author's Note) **Here it is. The real deal!

Finally at least one thing has gone right for me recently. That is this: I'm going to go active duty within a month or two. What this means for all of you is that this story will be TEMPORARILY discontinued. While I shall most definately continue to work on it before and during my time in the service, I have NO idea _when_ I'll be able to update in the coming months. It is for that reason alone.

Now, onto the main event. Enjoy!

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Kunai and Shuriken_

Everything was quiet. Like someone had turned mute on a television. Like she had just put on a pair of earmuffs. It unnerved her to no end, especially from her seat of choice: William's arms.

Raising her head, she glanced around in the darkness. The storm had stopped. From her point of view, it looked as though it had never occurred. But this did nothing to ease her terrified mind.

Desperately clinging to the only thing that could give her comfort, Sissi felt as though she'd been abandoned. Her precious Ulrich hadn't come to save her. He hadn't come to comfort or protect her. She hadn't seen him in hours.

Patting her back reassuringly, William stood up and partly lifted her with him. "It's okay," he said softly. "I think it's over."

Normally she'd have made a remark at the obviousness of the statement. But now she clung to each syllable as she did to him. It was in this moment that Sissi found a new love interest. One that could, would, and had protected and soothed her.

Poor William.

**

* * *

**Aelita saw her chance and leapt from the Flying Mantas she was on. Her fall was cushioned by a sand dune. Tumbling gracelessly down the slope, she managed to dig her hand in and slow her fall. 

By this time, the Mantas swarm had recovered from their collective shock at seeing the Scyphoza so brutally destroyed. They still had a job to do. Unfortunately, she seemed determined to do it the hard way. Assembling into trios, they began their attacks.

Instinctively, Aelita drew up a partial dome of sand around her as the lasers approached. As the Mantas swarm began to circle her, she was forced to completely shield herself. Drawing on sand from within the immediate area, her dome hardened to steel and was several inches thick.

"Jeremy?" Aelita called out. "How's Odd? He's not hurt, is he?

After a moment's hesitation, a disgruntled Jeremy answered. "Well, I don't know. Whatever happened to him has drained all but five of his life points and it would seem as thought he's fallen unconscious… If only Ulrich and Yumi were here, then we'd be able to get to him."

Aelita wanted to reach her blonde friend but she was trapped. If she tried to leave, the Mantas would swarm her. But she couldn't stay as they were pummeling her dome even now. If only she were invisible—

She gasped as an idea struck her like a mallet. Gathering the sand that was directly underneath her dome, she sent it up to reinforce the structure. Then by simply 'pushing' the sand aside, she formed a tunnel.

"Jeremy, guide me to Odd," she said as she dropped inside. As she did, she replaced the sand to hide the entrance. "I'm underground."

"Behind you and slightly to the right," he answered quickly.

**

* * *

**Off in the distance, a figure appeared in the sky. When he'd taken full form, he dropped lightly to the ground. Breathing in the hot air, he let out a relieved sigh. _WHAT A RIDE!_ He thought gleefully. 

Then he checked himself over. He wore a teal uniform that was classically reserved for martial artists. Strapped to his thighs was a pair of holsters with a dozen shuriken stars and kunai daggers that gleamed proudly up at him. And bound to his left forearm was a miniature computer. Feeling his face, he was relieved again to find his mask in place.

Smirking, he lifted his arm and a holographic display of the region appeared. It zoomed in to the eleven figures to the eastern portion. Nine Mantas were firing at a glowing structure as their prey slipped sneakily away from them underground towards another figure that was sprawled on a cliff top nearly a hundred meters away. His smirk widened at Aelita's resourcefulness.

Next he studied the basic layout of the landscape. It was mostly a rocky canyon with several stone stalagmites and a sea of sand dunes surrounding it. It would take him almost a half hour to reach them, _on foot_.

"I love coming prepared," he mumbled to himself. It was a lucky break on his part he'd considered this possibility and made preparations.

As he made ready to use his special ability, he felt tingling sensation creep down his spine. Someone or something was watching him. Looking in the direction he felt it from, he glimpsed a stubby head ducking under the horizon.

Smiling at the fearful gesture of the once-almighty deity, he yelled out, "You are _not_ my enemy! Besides, only _cowards_ hide when there's a battle to be fought, Xana!"

With that said, he teleported to where he was needed.

* * *

Erupting out of the sand dune like a bat out of hell, Aelita ran for the cliff face. With a simple gesture and 'pull,' a series of formed leading to the top. 

"Hurry, Aelita!" Jeremy said nerv9ously. "The Mantas have almost breached the dome."

Reaching Odd within moments, Aelita knelt down and shook him. "Odd, wake up!" But there was no response from him.

In the distance, the swarm let out a furious roar. They'd finally destroyed a considerable section of the dome, only to find it empty. Circling around they began searching for their prey, which was relatively easy to spot. They didn't care how she got there. But now that they found her, it was time to complete their mission.

Aelita didn't realize the danger until seconds after Jeremy's warning. The swarm let loose a wall of laser fire as she was turning to face them. She was struck no less than six times in a moment's notice. Lucky that half were glancing blows or she'd been devirtualized on the spot.

"Ten life points remaining!" Jeremy said, sounding considerably panicked. "They're coming around again!"

Struggling to stand, Aelita watched as the swarm circled around. She would've started running or created another dome, but it was too painful. It hurt to move. It hurt to breathe. It hurt to think. It just plain _hurt!_

She watched as the leading Mantas began charging its laser. The urge to dodge was great, but her body felt like it was trudging through molasses. She knew she wouldn't be able to move fast enough. The laser began to glow ominously.

The sound of metal whistling through the air suddenly broke the silence that was growing from the tension. Two metallic blurs seemed to have materialized from nowhere and struck the two leading Mantas. A deep, glowing puncture was visible on the Xana eye before both detonated.

"Oh _yeah!_" a loud voice cried out from what to seemed to be everywhere at once. "The _Hero of Justice_ has _arrived!_"

The swarm broke apart in a chaotic fashion. Trying to find the new threat, they began scanning the terrain. It was unnecessary however. For the next instant, Aelita's savior made his presence known.

"Omega!" the loud voice yelled. "Why don't you pick on someone who isn't defenseless, you cyber-_reject_?"

Aelita stared with confusion at the being that stood on the opposite side of the canyon. The first detail that really caught her attention was that the self-proclaimed 'Hero of Justice' was _short_. Yet his size didn't diminish the aura of confidence and humor that seemed to radiate from him.

Unsheathing a pair of kunai daggers, the boy tossed one to his other hand as he dropped into an aggressive fighting stance. The remaining Mantas had regrouped and were converging on his location. He chuckled as they opened fire on him

Ducking, dodging, blocking, and deflecting the hail of lasers, the boy broke out in wild laughter. He moved with an agility and flexibility that would've made many gymnasts seethe in jealousy. It was almost as though he knew where the attacks would come from and had already moved to deflect or dodge. And the whole while, he had scarcely moved two feet from his original position.

As the swarm attempted to veer away, his hand snapped to his thigh. A trio of shuriken stars literally flew out of his hand and impacted the leading three monsters.

Jumping away from the cliff, he turned and sprinted down deeper into the canyon. The group was disoriented for a several moments before pursuing the boy. The something strange happened. He vanished.

Even with his bright teal uniform that was horribly out-of-place in the golden desert, he couldn't be seen. Then his mocking laughter at their futile search attempts only infuriated them more. Judging from his voice, he seemed to be everywhere at once again.

"You sent mere _grunts_ to fight an _entire army_!" his voice held more arrogance then any normal person could ever hope to acquire. "But this is getting boring."

Suddenly he reappeared at the far end of the canyon. In one hand he held a kunai and a shuriken in the other. With his arms crossed over his chest, he would've seemed to become dangerously serious. If not for his resounding laughter, that is.

The Mantas regrouped and swooped down toward him laser cannons glowing. Seeing this action, the finally stopped laughing uncontrollably. Yet from his body posture, it was clear he still found much amusement in the situation.

Dashing forward, the two sides rushed each other. Deflecting any stray laser near him, the boy's image suddenly blurred as he increased his speed astronautically. With a mighty leap, he landed on the lead monster. As he slashed the eye, he cast the shuriken at another to the side.

Hopping to the other side, his arm snapped out. The kunai dug a deep furrow across the Mantas's backside as it attempted to dive away. Quickly extracting the weapon, his body flickered out of existence. Only to instantaneously reappear and drop onto the final monster.

Stabbing the eye so deeply, he was forced to relinquish his hold on it. Carelessly leaning backward, he dropped to the ground. As he landed gracefully on a solitary stalagmite in the canyon, all four monsters exploded in almost the same instant. He glanced over his shoulder at the flaming debris and a small chuckle escaped his lips.

Aelita watched all this and was both awed and frightened. This stranger had just displayed a level of combat prowess that she didn't truly believe could exist. He destroyed nearly a dozen Mantas without even getting a scratch. In fact, it was clearly a game to him. Now, as he slowly walked back towards her, one question lingered in her mind.

_What does he want?_

Above her, her two other friends finally were virtualized above her. This did little to ease her nervousness.


	25. Taking Shame, Giving Blame

**Unleashing Valor**

By: Tellemicus Sundance

_Taking Shame, Giving Blame_

Darkness…

Silence…

He didn't remember how he got there. He didn't know why he was there. He didn't have a firm grip on his memories. They were jumbled in a chaotic heap of clear and fresh to hazy and forgotten. He couldn't feel his body, like the worst-case scenario for body paralysis.

Why was he here? What's going on? Where was he? Was his friends and family alright? Was he dead and in some void between heaven and hell? What was that—?

—sound? Voices…

An argument? Where were they? Who are they? They did sound familiar. One voice was quiet, yet forceful. Another was definitely worried but kind. The third seemed…surprised and agitated. These voices were the most familiar, but the fourth one was undeniably cheerful and rather loud.

Just like how he usually was.

Then, all at once, things snapped into place. Wincing at the burning of his muscles, Odd let out a loud groan. Trying to raise himself off the ground, he felt kind hands descend onto his shoulders.

Cracking his eyes open to view the person, he immediately wished he hadn't. Insanely bright colors flooded his vision, almost blinding him. It was a pain someone usually felt when some inconsiderate creep would shoot their headlights into a person's eyes while driving at night.

"How are you doing, Odd?" a kind voice, Aelita he realized, asked. "You okay?"

"Sure," he groaned. "As long as you define 'okay' as in 'heaps of agony.'"

Loud laughter erupted from somewhere nearby, making Odd wince again. Even his _hearing_ was ridiculously sensitive!

* * *

While Aelita was checking up on their blonde friend, Ulrich and Yumi kept a close watch on the strange kid. Keeping herself in a loose stance, Yumi was ready to sic her weapons upon the kid should he do something remotely suspicious. 

Surprisingly, she couldn't get a clear image to what his intentions were through his body language. His stance, his walk, even the subtle way that he kept one hand near his weapons' pouches just all screamed out that he was a seasoned warrior; thus quite deadly. Yet he approached unarmed and in perfect view of them, so he was either foolish or extremely confident. When he spoke or gestured, it was cheerful and almost heartfelt, like he was among old friends.

Very confusing.

"About time you two showed up," the small kid said cheerfully. "Although you just missed all the fun stuff."

"Who are you?" she demanded.

The boy grasped his chest as if in pain. "Yumi-chan!" he whined. "You don't recognize me? Oh, that hurts. We had such fun a few nights ago!"

The insinuation wasn't lost on the pair. Yumi fought to control a reflexive blush that was threatening to break through her makeup. Ulrich's reaction was nothing more than an almost accusing glance toward her. Their reactions led to loud chuckles from the boy.

Returning their attention to the Lyoko newcomer, Ulrich practically growled out, "What do you want?"

"To prepare the heroes of the Resistance," was his simple reply. If he'd not spoken it with such conviction and determination, they wouldn't have taken him as being serious.

Suddenly, he crouched down and rushed them with incredible speed. Speed that easily rivaled Ulrich's best. Before they could react, he grabbed them by their throats as he raced between them.

Hearing their cries of surprise, Aelita look up in time to see her savior slam her friends hard into the ground. After a moment, he lifted them up and leapt surprisingly high into the air. Then all three disappeared.

* * *

The next thing that he knew, he was no longer in the overwhelming heat of a desert. Rather, a wind of bitter cold and snow tore through his uniform. The sudden change in climate practically froze his muscles and nerves. 

He glared at the boy as they descended. He'd lifted Yumi above them and seemed to plan on using him as a cushion for when they landed. Ulrich tried to pry the boy's hand off him, but the kid had a grip of steel.

They landed on what felt to Ulrich as thick glass. He could actually feel the cracks forming under him before he heard them. Then the added weight of the other two caught up and the ice broke.

The boy thrust Ulrich under the surface. The freezing water felt trillions of white-hot needles were being driven into his skin and burning. It took him only a second to right himself and swim for the hole that he'd created in the ice.

After only a few moments, Ulrich lay shivering on the ice, gasping for a breath. Then a sound reached his ears. Footsteps. Turning, he saw a pair of feet walking towards him. Looking up, he felt his blood run cold, with no help from the environment.

"_Tadashi-kun_?"

* * *

Pulling herself out of the debris that had once been a tall oak tree, Yumi looked up towards the kid. He hung upside-down under the branch of another oak. Then a wave of pain rushed through her. In less than a few seconds, she'd been subjected to two crushing blows that probably would've easily killed and severely injure her on Earth. 

"Yeah, I bet it hurts," the boy said quietly. "To know you face an opponent whose faster, stronger, and better equipped does wonders to humble a person."

Looking back up at the kid, Yumi's pain seemed to flare. She was alone. No one could help her here. She was drastically outmatched. Instinctively she knew that he was close-quarters fighter.

While she was fair in hand-to-hand combat, in Lyoko she had no decent weaponry to use. Her fans were designed and used strictly for blocking lasers and attacking long distance.

"What do you want from me?" she asked as he dropped to the ground.

"Enough talk!" he barked. "Fight me!"

And fight, they did.

* * *

Wearily, Ulrich heaved his aching body out of the snow bank he'd been thrown into. Though his body was devoid of any injuries, his lungs were burning for air, even as he took deep, long breaths. His muscles were cramped or pulled. His adrenaline and need for agility were the only things that were keeping him standing. 

If his body was experiencing any of these problems, Tadashi didn't show or even seem to notice. His focus was entirely on Ulrich. Studying, strategizing, and glaring all at once; just as Ulrich remembered him to be like.

"_Your form is sloppy_," Tadashi said. "_Your reflexes have dulled and you lack the will to fight_."

Turning his back in contempt, the Japanese teenager walked further out across the frozen lake. Ulrich approached with caution. He didn't want to fight his friend. He wanted to know how he got to Lyoko, maybe even France. So many questions, yet he was acting as though this was just another sparring session.

"_Just like when Taki-chan died_," Tadashi growled over his shoulder, knowing the dangers.

Now it wasn't a friendly spar. It was a battle between two alpha males. Tadashi was questioning his ability, which he suddenly needed to prove. Shoving caution to the backseat, Ulrich found the will to lunge forward while ignoring his aching body.

As they fought with renewed vigor, Tadashi all but growled out, "_How do you live with yourself while knowing that you failed_?"

"_Anger outweighs guilt_," he grunted, slashing for Tadashi's side.

Ducking under the blade, Tadashi backed up as he said, "_Maybe, but it's time that you face the facts and embrace the truth_."

"_Truth_?"

"_While you could've helped to prevent it_," the young samurai said. "_Taki-chan's death was not your fault_."

A fear rose in Ulrich and compelled him to attack. He had told himself countless times that if he could've done something, then Taki wouldn't have had to die. He would rather take the blame and shame, than to put it on someone who didn't deserve it.

Blocking Ulrich's furious slashes, Tadashi said calmly, "_It was Riyo-sensei's fault._"

_That_ struck a nerve.

In his anger, Ulrich overextended his thrust. Tadashi sidestepped and grabbed the katana's hilt. With a sharp twist, he sent the weapon bouncing and sliding across the ice. Slamming his elbow into Ulrich's face, he succeeded in temporarily stunning him. A swift knee to the gut had him sliding the opposite direction of his sword.

Shaking himself of his befuddled mind, Ulrich carefully climbed to his feet. The cracking of the ice under them was not lost to the teenaged samurai as they glared at one another for a moment.

A sudden golden blur was more than enough of a warning for Tadashi to dodge to the side. With superhuman agility and strength, he caught Ulrich's extended fist and flipped him heavily onto the ice.

Backing away again, Tadashi voice was unreadable as he continued his lecture. "_Your anger doesn't change the fact that Riyo-sensei failed to act_."

"_He was outnumbered six to one_," Ulrich growled as he reoriented himself.

"_Would that stop you_?" Tadashi demanded as the younger boy climbed to his feet.

"_I'm younger, stronger_," he stated. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew that he'd said the wrong thing.

"_Age is nothing_!" Tadashi snapped as he suddenly attacked. Instinctively raising his arms to block the slash, Ulrich stepped inside the reach of the blade's arc. Only to be greeted by a fist to the stomach. "_Strength is nothing_!"

As he was again thrown back, he heard as all to familiar phrase. "_Your will to act is everything_!"

Climbing to his feet again, Ulrich looked sullenly at his one-time friend. He understood was being said. He just didn't want to believe it. It was easier to blame himself on what happened than to accept that he'd been powerless.

Powerless to do anything; but watch as the horrible scene unfolded.

Apparently Tadashi had calmed down enough to talk civilly again. "_You are strong, you know? Probably stronger than any of your friends._"

"_You don't know my friends_," Ulrich said quietly.

"_But I know the rage that burns inside you_," he replied evenly. "_That incredible anger that pulls at the very essence of your soul, begging to be released upon those who have ever wronged you in the past_."

There was something in his tone that had Ulrich lowering his guard. Someone knew what was wrong with. Someone understood that the gathering force of his anger was like water behind a dam: too much pressure would lead to the dam's destruction.

"_Anger grants you great power_," Tadashi said quietly. "_But as you discovered, it has a terrible price_." He looked straight into Ulrich's eyes and saw an emptiness that only a person who'd lost some precious to them would have. It was time to introduce him to his greatest fear. "_You fear your own power, your own capabilities_."

Lifting up his katana, Tadashi prepared for another attack. Once he tickled his friend's anger and fear enough, he was guaranteed to receive a worthy challenge. That was what all that earlier talking was for. He was subtly and not so subtly probing at defenses he knew were guarding the boy's true strengths.

"_If you cannot accept and conqueryour own fears_," he said, raising his voice for emphasis. "_You shall never be able to beat me_!"

"_I NEVER WANTED TO FIGHT YOU!_" Ulrich yelled back.

If Tadashi had a reply to this, it was not to be. For at that moment the ground shook violently. The air seemed to be charged with electricity as the sky darkened. The darkness started on the horizon and was fast racing across the digital sky. Then an overwhelming presence made itself known

Yumi.

_How can she generate that much power?_ Ulrich asked himself. Though he wasn't in Lyoko when Odd did the same thing, he suddenly felt sure that his blonde friend had quite created the same force that Yumi had. _What is fueling her to go to such extremes?_

"You let your guard down!" Tadashi yelled as he slammed his fist into Ulrich's face.

As he collapsed, Tadashi brought his katana down on the ice under his feet. The ice, which had already been under considerable stress, finally broke apart under Ulrich's falling body and swallowed him whole into the cold water.

**

* * *

(VERY IMPORTANT Author's Note)** Well, here it is. This is most definitely going to be my final chapter before I go active duty. Here's an update on my status. 

Because my job specialty doesn't exist in the regular Army, I have to return to Fort Jackson, South Carolina on May 9. I will be there for more than two months training in a different job specialty. After that, I'll be shipped out to my new duty station. I hope to go to Germany, Europe.

I have no idea when I'll be able to post my next chapter, but I will definitely continue writing. That's a good pastime when you're bored and have personal time.

Also, for those of you who may be interested…I'm thinking of writing a Star Wars fanfic about Luke and Leia once I'm finished with this one. It's not anything other a mere storyline right now, but I hope to write it. But that doesn't mean I will. If any of you wish for me to write it, I will consider it. _And your opinions mean **a lot** to me_.

Until the next chapter: _Clash of Swordsmen_


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